Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Outside the winds howled, casting an overall dark shadow on the gloomy day. It’s been raining nonstop in this sleepy beach town. The orange tinted gem hummed softly to himself, starting to boot up the computer he used for work. Nothing too different from the usual grind of daily work. It wasn’t anything too drooling and difficult. He paused, looking around and scanning over the current files in front of him. Just… Reports. Perhaps writing these was pointless, but he more or less liked to write them as some sort of reminder. More of a, “hey, you came from a horrible place Barry.”

The mere thought of Homeworld caused shivers down his spine. Afterall, he wasn’t too old when he rebelled. He wasn’t exactly best of friends with John but he did know Arin. The pink gem actually approached Barry first with the idea. Shortly afterwards they created a small rebellion to… Protect earth. During the war they did many, many, horrible things. The kindergarten… The fusion experiments..

One of the close Gems apart of their team was Ross, formally Aquamarine. He was one of the gems made in those holes. Although now it seemed as if he was a part of them.. For as annoying the guy is, he actually isn’t that bad.

Now that he thought about it… What weird names that was to take on. Orange diamond was technically his name, but Barry had such a nicer ring tone doesn’t it? Kevin thought so at least. Now all these human names have evolved from the famous “Barry joke”.

His eyes scanned his desk, whole body tensing at once… That-That box caught his attention. “This box…” He trailed off, slowly reaching out to pick it up. This couldn’t the one…The box that they had sealed away and told him that he couldn’t mess with.

It was a simple box with gold edges, a chipping blue paint job, and a dark blue cracking gem on the top of it. He slowly opened the box, it starting up and playing a simple song. It played for a few moments before he shut the box quickly. No, no, no, no! That’s the box. Where did this come from- “Hey Barry. Look at what I found while I was digging through closets for something.” The other pointed to the box in his hands.

If he was human and had one, his heart would have stopped. Arin. Arin was digging around. “Hey Arin… What’s up?” The orange gem asked, turning towards the other.

Standing before him was a naturally pink gem, more known as Tourmaline on Homeworld. Ever since they left and took refuge on earth, his good friend much preferred to be called Arin. The pink gem was actually the first person to suggest taking on human names… To be more a part of the rich culture. “Nothing really.” He replied, giving off a soft shrug. “I was looking for some of those sketch books we bought but I found that in the bottom of the closet, I’m trying to find one of them… Any reason we have it?”

Fuck. “Well, it’s just an old box. I’m not completely sure where we picked it up, but.. You may play with it if you want.” He suggested, hoping that the other would simply grow bored after playing with it. “It only plays one song.. I think it’s a homeworld creation. Must’ve gotten it from an old gem. I think he mentioned it would sing healing songs...”

Arin nodded slowly, reaching out and taking the box from Barry’s hands. He waved to his friend, starting to walk towards the door. The pink gem grabbed his jacket and started to walk outside, pulling his jacket over the box to hide it from being damaged further. It looked like something that could help his lack of inspiration. What humans called, “writer’s block”. Well, for him it was more of artist’s block. This box seemed to be drawing him in… It was such a beautiful sight.

Arin instantly perked up once he reached his old drawing spot. This town was almost barren but that didn't seem to be a bad thing lately. More people didn’t need to know that they were gem aliens from another planet. Most of the assholes around here seemed to scream and run from them for that fact. Although, Mark was pretty cool about it.

Mark Fischbach was nice enough for a next door neighbor. Tall dark haired male was a “Youtuber”. He even suggested that they should try out and (OF COURSE) Ross is set on trying out the idea. Arin was ify on it… If anything he’d want to do that sort of thing with Jon.. Now the guy wasn’t around. He gave himself to the rebellion and lost his life for it. Now here Arin was, stuck here with Ross.. Barry, Suzy, and Kevin weren’t bad company.. None of them are like Jon though. No one can be Jon.

The pink gem sat down on the edge of the beach, running fingers through the grains of sand. He often came here to think or sketch out something if he was in the mood. Currently, drawing landscapes of the beach scene was his focus. They seemed to be the most fun to recreate. Although, today he felt more or just seeing what he could just sketch out.

His attention turned to the box, starting to open it and half expecting the old song it’d spit out. Rather came out, “Hey Arin”. It came out in mixed clips of what Barry had said to him earlier. This… Was this box talking to him?

He took a moment to look around, searching for a reason as to why this was happening. “Are… You talking to me?” Arin asked slowly, pointing to himself as a force of habit. “No, you can’t be.”

“Yes,” It cut in a clip of Barry once more, “I was.” It ended with a small clip from what he’d said to Barry earlier.

“You’re… Is Barry fucking with me?” The pink gem asked, starting to feel annoyance bubble up. He bought this?! Barry must’ve been wanting to punk him, afterall, he gave Arin the box.

The box didn’t respond for a moment before it mashed together another clip. “I’m,” It cut again to form a sentence. “A, gem.”

His brow furrowed, looking over the box for any sign of this being a joke once more. “You’re… Just a box..” He crossed his arms, huffing as he blew a small strand of hair out of his eyes. “Do you mean.. The blue gem, on the top here?” He asked, slowly pointing to the gem on the top of the box.

It was a circular blue gem that seemed to be stuck to the top of the box. Running through the gem looked to be a few cracks, causing mild concern from Arin. This couldn’t be another gem.. Why would Barry have had this? Who gave him a box with a gem tied to it.. Was that possible? He’s certainly heard of gems being imprisoned to objects such as mirrors or music boxes.. Did that mean that this gem did horrible things? Or was it another Homeworld rule that didn’t make sense. Did they rebel as well?

“A, gem.” It repeated over again. “I’ll, sing, as, a gem.” It added, masking together more clips from Barry and himself. Maybe this box-er gem, could sing healing songs.

This seemed crazy, he couldn’t just release some gem onto the world. Who knows if their hostile! But it was wrong to just ignore this gem.. Maybe if the gem wasn’t in for protecting earth like them, he could poof him and bubble them until they can help him! Yeah! Jon used to bubble the corrupt gems all the time! “I should… Maybe I should talk to the other’s about this.” Arin mumbled.

“No!” The box played a clip of Arin from earlier, seeming to make it sound more panicked.

“Hey… Don’t worry. The crystal grumps aren’t so bad.” He didn’t think twice before scooping the box into his arms and starting to walk to the house. On the way the box didn’t make another peep. It stayed silent. It was almost erry now that he’d heard it before.. It was clearly some sort of other that was stuck in this box.

“Barry! Suzy!” The male called, swinging open the door with a new found enthusiasm. He couldn’t help it! Ross isn’t the only one that can find cool stuff! Wait till they found out this!

Standing on the stairs was the green gem that he knew as Suzy, a newfound blonde streak in her hair. She was back from being poofed! Perfect timing! “Look at what I’ve got Suz, this box has a gem in it!” He exclaimed, holding the box proudly. “It told me that It’ll really sing if we get him to.” He added.

He hadn’t processed how extremely… Insane that sounded. Even for gem standards that sounded weird. Maybe it didn’t help that his depression over Jon’s passing made him more likely to make stories for attention.. “Arin…” She started, face contorting into one of true concern.

Walking out of the office was Barry, followed by a puzzled Ross. “What’s happening?” He asked, one hand rubbing his eyes.

Suzy turned on her heels, halfway down the steps as she reached towards her gem. “Barry, he’s convinced that box can talk.” Pity run through her words, heartbroken to see him make up such stories. “Please, hand it over-”

“No!” Arin exclaimed, backing up towards the door. He watched them start to summon weapons-no, this isn’t how it was supposed to go! They were supposed to acknowledge him! They-They should pay some attention to him! Like… Like, Jon would have.

He bolted outside, not paying much mind to the gems chasing after him. “Arin please!” He could hear the pleas of Suzy calling for him, mixed in with Barry calling for him and Ross’s confused questions. “W-what do I do?” He yelled, glancing at the box. “Talk to me damn it! Tell me I’m not insane!” He shouted louder, eyes focusing on the gem in place on the box. They’re… They’re bound to the box. Free them. The voice in the back of his head seemed to tell him, blocking out everything as his he felt his fingers curl around the circular gem.

“ARIN! Stop!” The orange gem screamed, watching the other pull the blue gem off. No… It was too late.

The pink gem dropped the blue gem, watching it start to form. He jumped, landing backwards onto the sand, eyes widening. Within a moment, standing before him was a blue gem with a dark mop of curly hair and dark eyes staring down at him. “You.. Let me out.” He mumbled, voice striking him.

“Yeah-I-”

The other’s eyes widened, spotting the three gems that’d been following the two. “You three…” He mumbled, facial expression flashing into rage. “YOu knew I was in there! Y-You knew that they locked me in there!” He screamed.

The three on the beach showed to be speechless, looking the gem over. “Wh-y did you leave me in there!? What did I do to you?” He asked, voice raised in an angered tone.

“We-Benitoite please-” Barry started.

“Don’t say that to me!” The other, that Arin assumed that Benitoite, shouted. He clenched his fists, rage building. “Yo-u wanna hear me sing?! Now I’ll make you!” He slipped his hands up towards his ears, screaming at the top of his lungs. The sound was almost ear shattering, leaving the gems lost and in shock. Arin, being the closest, felt as if he was going to go deaf.

The other turned to him, glancing at the ocean. “Arin… This is goodbye until we can talk further…” It almost took a few moments to register.

“W-wait! Ben-”

He stopped him. “It will be soon Arin. You’re the only person on this rock that I can call my friend after all.”

With that, he was gone. The blue gem disappeared into the ocean that night. Sure, Suzy and Barry searched for months but no one was able to find him. They all checked to make sure the screams didn't cause any permit damage but Arin couldn't stop thinking about the gem. He.. They were friends. He needed to see him again. Unforchenitly, that wouldn't be until  over a year.

Chapter Text

“He just disappeared?!” Mark asked on the phone, eyes full of wonder. They’ve been nonstop talking about the mystery of this blue gem from earlier. “And this all had to happen the night that I was visiting family?!” He asked again, voice filling with a whiny child’s tone. Why did he have to be gone the one week that something finally happens?

Mark was a curious child, growing up with his brother and usually being let loose to explore back when he lived in Ohio. Soon afterwards he moved into this beach town. He wasn’t the brightest kid but he had a big heart. Sure, he tried talking to people but most of them didn’t seem interested. Sooner or later, an ‘interesting’ family moved in. They called themselves, “The crystal grumps”

He mostly remembered meeting them when Ross was attempting to throw a racket ball at Arin and-long story short, it ended up shattering his window. The gems were more than cool! They protected earth! The place where he recorded his videos and spent his days trying to make people happy!

“Yeah, Suz and Barry hasn’t been able to find the mystery gem. Arin and him are best friends I hear-”

“Shut up Ross!” The pink gem shouted loud enough for Mark to hear on the line.

This caused the raven haired male to have a giggle bubble up in the back of his throat, sitting down at his desk and starting to search for any reports of it. “Anyways, since you’re the earth expert, I was thinking I could call our buddy Mark to help out.”

Mark nodded, typing quickly into the search engine. “Does this mean I’m finally apart of the team?” He asked, trying to hide the pure excitement he felt.

“Huh? Yeah, sure.” Ross shrugged, “You’re always useful anyways!” He added on, listening to the other type.

He was a crystal grump! Well, kind of a crystal grump. Suzy liked to call Mark their human expert. It was actually kind of fun to fill them in on human topics. Last week he had to explain Halloween, due to it’s fast approach. Suzy looked like she was going to explode with how excited she was.

Ross chuckled on the other end of the line, leaning back against the dull white wall of the hallway. “Anyways Mark, looks like I’ve got to go, Arin is getting pissy again.” With that, the line clicked, leaving Mark to himself.

Arin huffed, shooting a dagger like glare at the blue gem as he finished up on the phone. “You know what? I’m going for a walk!” He called, receiving an observant glance of concern from Suzy. “I just, just need some air..” He chewed on his bottom lip, swinging open the door.

Getting outdoors, the sun shined through the clouds, winds picking up to create a nice breeze. Certainly much nicer than yesterday with all the storms of lately. He ran off at a moderate pace, sand shifting under his shoes. Just him on the shoreline today. He exhaled a shaky sigh, crossing his arms and simply staring out at the shore. It seemed to go on forever… That was such the fascinating thing about the ocean-

Within a moment, he felt his body tumble to the sand by another weight running up towards him in a blur of blue. “Arin!” A familiar voice, with a new cheery tone, sung out.

“W-wha?” Arin asked, sitting up once the other slid off him. His gaze looked towards the voice with his eyes widening. “Benitoite?!” He questioned, instantly knowing it was the same blue gem that he’d let out.

He chuckled, spinning around on his heels for him. “What do you think? I took a little time to fix the cracks and-boom baby! Back in business!” The blue gem took a moment to ruffle his messy curls of hair. It certainly seemed longer than before.

This Benitoite was much more.. Cheerful than the last time that they met. He noticed quite a few changes of the bat. Longer dark curled hair going down to his shoulders, a dark blue one piece with red star around his gem.. The gem also was much much happier than the last time they met.

“I-Uh-nice to see you again.” Arin murmured, at a pure loss for the words. His cheeks flushed a light pink, watching the other fiddle around with the cape around his shoulders.

The blue gem snickered, covering his mouth to hide his wide grin. “Happy to see me? I said I’d come back for you.” He rolled back on his heels gleefully. “May I ask, why..” He cleared his throat, gathering Arin’s attention. “Why do you all have such, odd names?”

“Oh.” Arin nodded, looking back at the other. “Our neighbor, Mark, thought we should all try out human names.” He explained, trying to… Make it as easy as possible to understand. Not that Benitoite was dumb or anything! He understood how confusing human customs were! “I am known as Tourmaline, back on Homeworld. It’s kind of a way of saying that we’re here, on earth now.” He shrugged.

The blue gem slowly raised a brow, nodding as he processed the thought. “That makes sense, I suppose.” His eyes widened, grin returning to his face. “Can I have some sort of ‘human name’ as well?” He asked him.

“Yeah, I suppose so.” The pink gem paused, pondering over names. What could they go with? They already have Suzy, Ross, Kevin, Barry, Mark, and of course Arin.. “What about…” The name was on the tip of his tongue.. “Dan!” He proclaimed once he remembered a name.

The other raised a brow, face flattening. “What.. What does that mean?”

“It’s short for Daniel, but we could also call you Danny.” He replied, fiddling with his fingers. “I mean, if you don’t like that, it’s fine-”

“I love it!” The gem, now known as Danny, grinned back at Arin.

Why would they think this gem would hurt him? Dan seemed harmless infact, well, besides his sore knees from hitting the sand. “You got your gem fixed right?” Arin asked, sneaking a peek at the gem lying on Dan’s stomach in the spot of a belly button.

Dan nodded and tapped the gem with pride, “Where’s your’s?” He questioned the other, looking for some sort of jewel on the other.

He pointed to the bright pink gem on his hand, flashing it in the light of the sun's rays beating down on them. “Here, crappy I know-”

“No, I like it.” Dan mumbled, reaching out and grabbing the other’s hand to observe the gem. “It’s cool, really.” He whispered.

The gem’s face flushed darker, quick to avoid eye contact with the other. “Thanks, really man.” He replied in a hushed tone, slowly pulling his hand back. “Hey Dan, I’m glad you came back-”

“Hey! Guess that guy is flocking to Arin!” A sly voice shouted, causing the blue gem to tense. Standing at the end of the beach stood two boys. A light blue gem with an interesting accent and another dark haired boy with large glasses.

Chapter Text

He spent years, years locked away from the world. Everyone tossed him aside to be nothing more than trash. Just an old cracking blue box that played the same songs. Sitting in the back of that old closet, dust collecting boredom. Waiting, listening, hoping for someone to trust him. He was alone anymore… The punishment was over.

No more torture, no more homeworld rules, no more homeworld ever again. It almost seemed to be a dream, meeting Arin. This gem showed to be so much different than those other gems. He wasn’t like them, the ones that locked him away.

Marking today, the time he’s met Arin, he is no longer Benitoite. This gem was all new. Dan was his name now. This blue gem wasn’t bound to homeworld any more, he was an earth gem now.

Arin grit his teeth, lips pressing together into a thin line of unamusement. “This isn’t any of your damn buisness Ross!” He hissed, eyes narrowing. He wasn’t losing him this time, not again.

“You can’t change the fact that he’s from homeworld!” Ross argued with him, arm slowly inching towards his gem. “He wasn’t excited to see us in the first place, why the hell would he want to come back here? They’ll just shove him into another box or somethin’.”

Mark couldn’t take listening to the arguing… Watching them tear each other apart. Was-Was Homeworld really like this? He’s only been told stories about Homeworld from Arin, Barry usually stopped talking for an hour or two if he asked, and Suzy would make up some sort of lie to not talk about it. This blue gem might be from there as well, maybe he’ll talk about it as well.. “Both of you stop!” The dark haired male cried, catching everyone’s attention at once. “What are you doing? He’s not a monster, he’s a gem just like you two!”

Dan tilted his head towards Mark, dark eyes fighting back tears, hands slipping over his mouth. They, They didn’t think was a monster.. Well, the human didn’t think he was.

Ross snuck a peek at Mark, furrowing a brow. “Mark, you don’t know anything about Homeworld-”

“Neither do you Ross, you’re from earth. I’ll admit it, I don’t know what they’ve done to any of you, but you’re from earth.” He was quick to argue. “From what I’ve heard from Arin, you are one lucky gem Ross.”

The light blue gem turned away, arms dropping to his side in defeat. “Just.. Just ask Suz and Barry what they think, okay?” He asked softly, swallowing and biting onto his bottom lip. “I know they just want Kevin safe.”

Arin nodded. “Okay.” He calmly stepped towards the other, “Are you-”

“I’m fine.” Ross grumbled, crossing his arms and peered at Dan. “It’s not my choice afterall.” He murmured, lips pursing together into a thin line.

The three gems made it inside with the human trailing behind them, dark eyes flashing concern. “Barry, we’re home.” Ross called, sticking close to the left of Arin. On the right Dan stood, looking around the entire home.

It was a space big enough for a few people. The door opened into a bright living room with a large television. Next door to it was an office where Barry seemed to work on whatever kept his mind busy and on the left was a small walk in kitchen. Since the gems didn’t need to eat, it was usually whatever Mark brought for them to try, with the exception of whatever Ross insists that he needs. Back besides that was the bathroom that came with the home, of course none of the gems need it. Suzy has more or less used it to play with human make up. Finally the warp pad was out in the open of the living room with the door behind it. Gem rooms worked much different than human rooms of course.

Each room was to match them, connecting in a way. The technical term was the temple of course. Arin’s room kept a pink color scheme, light, colorful, perhaps “girly” to most. Suzy on the other hand had a much darker room, vines and whatever else grew in the darkness when you didn’t look. Ross’s room has grown to more of hoarde his collection of treasures-Trash. Kevin hasn’t exactly been able to get his gem to open the room, siding to keep his items in the spare guest room. Barry’s room was more well kept than Ross’s but overall bare. Jon-No one has gone in Jon’s room. Not since his gem shattered. The slot on the door’s gem in his place much rather stayed a dull color, almost unused.

Down the hall, pacing out of the bathroom was the green gem from earlier. “Arin, where have Ross and you…” She stopped, meeting eyes with the dark haired new gem. “Is that-”

“Suzy, this is Dan.” Arin stopped her, moving aside for her to see the gem. “Hear me out on this, he’s not a bad guy.” The pink gem awaited some sort of argument, having grown used to her in thought face.

Her lips slowly curled upwards into a smile, waving at the blue gem. “Nice to meet you Danny.” Suzy replied, her blonde streak of hair slipping out from being tucked behind her ear.

The two gems exchanged smiles before Barry exited his room. His body tensed, meeting eyes with the other gem. “Arin, how did you-”

“Like I said, the guy just follows Arin.” Ross joked lightly, making sure to interrupt Barry, nudging Mark to force an awkward laugh. “See, Mark get’s it.”

Arin peered back at Ross, eyes narrowing before he took a deep breath and turned to the orange gem. “Barry, this gem is now Dan. He hasn’t harmed us, I swear. He wouldn’t try to hurt Kevin.. You’ve got to understand.” He replied, stepping closer to hide the taller gem behind him.

“Arin, I understand where you are coming from but I cannot-”

Suzy turned to him, slipping a hand on her hips. “Come on Barry. If he wanted to kill us, he would have done it by now.” She bickered, crossing her arms.

All in all, the blue gem was accepted into the home. What could Barry say? His hands were tied. He couldn’t say that he knew what that gem was… A gem muncher. The orange gem didn’t want to seem to be the downer here but it was understandable to not want to risk it. What if the gem was unstable? Ninja’s were made to eat gem shards. There was no way to tell how-if any-Dan has eaten. Of course he would never ask him about it, he had to respect how the other must feel about it.

“Arin, you fought in the war?” The turquoise gem asked in wonder, looking up from the television. “What was it like?” Kevin inquired once more.

The gem flipped a few locks of dark locks out of his eyes, making a hum of confusion. “Yes Kev, I was.. It was.. Done. That’s what it is. Fucking over.” He grumbled, grabbing his mug from the table quickly, turning to leave the room.

Suzy looked to her feet once more, “Hey Kevin, the… The war is a sensitive topic for him okay? I know you just wanna know about it, but let’s let him have time to move on.” She whispered, leaning on the couch.

Next to Kevin, Ross glanced up at her. “Suz, he’s had years to forget about it-”

“Ross! Do not talk like that. You weren’t there to see what happened out there.” She quickly snapped at him, eyes narrowing. “Don’t patronize Arin for being bitter about what happened, I saw horrible things out there.” She crossed her arms.

“Like what?” Kevin asked, tilting his head up towards her. “Can you… Tell us some sort of scary story about Homeworld maybe?” He asked.

The green gem paused, pondering over her answer for a few moments. “Alright, I suppose I can tell you sooomething.” She stretched out the last word, thinking of something small to start with. “Alright, both of you, one rule when I tell you this story. You have to know that Homeworld wasn’t a pleasant place, they had many rules and forced many things on us.” She warned, walking around the couch and sitting down between the two younger gems.

They both nodded, making a hum of approval.

“Good, you both understand.” She slipped them a smile, crossing her legs and sitting up to keep her balance. She waved her hands to start the story, “Back on Homeworld, after I was created, I was told of some sort of project. This project was to create gems.. That ate dead gem shards.”

Kevin shivered, one hand reaching up to tap the gem on his nose. “Ate them?” He asked her.

She nodded, “Yes, I can stop if you’re uncomfortable-”

“No, keep going!” Ross insisted, watching her with his full attention.

“Yes, well, these gems were made to eat the shards. The idea was underdeveloped of course, creating many made for the purpose but the shards started to grow on their bodies. Most shard eating gems were killed in the war, but many suggest that some survived.” She teased them, flashing a cheshire grin. “And that’s all you two will hear for now.” Suzy stood, turning around to meet eyes with-”Hey Dan.” She whispered.

The other instantly turned away, pacing back towards the door and quickly opening it up to go into his room. Once he’d moved in, the dull gem that’d been Jon’s turned a dark blue for his own gem to mark his room.

“He okay?” Kevin asked, leaning on the couch as he watched the door close.

“I-I.. Hope so.” She whispered, raising a brow at the odd behavior.

“Wow, first Arin, now Danny.” Ross mumbled, turning his attention back to the television from earlier. “Guess no one wants to talk about the war, except Suz.” He added.

She stayed silent, hand brushing over the mixture of green and yellow gem. “Not everyone wants to talk about it Ross."

Chapter Text

“Alright, today I was thinking that we could show Kev a little taste of fusion.” Ross exclaimed, grinning widely at the other gems sitting at the table with him. “We almost never fuse unless it’s for missions and ‘we need the help’.” He added on, using his pointer and middle finger to create air quotes. The topic of fusion has always been fascinating to him and no one fuses with him unless they are practically nagged to do so.

Arin glanced at the other with skepticism, “I don’t know about that Ross, what would we show him? Why does he need to see it right this insistent?” He inquired, drumming his fingers on the kitchen table.

“Well, he’ll never learn if we don’t show him! Fusions are good for all sort of things!” He proclaimed, crossing his arms over his chest and extending his bottom lip.

Sitting down at the table, the green gem joined the conversation. “Actually, that doesn’t sound like too bad of an idea.” Suzy spoke up, beaming at the both of them. “Just something simple wouldn’t be bad to try.” She suggested, shrugging her shoulders back.

The brunette sighed, “Fine.” He murmured and flipped his blonde streak out of his eyes. “You fuse, since you like it so damn much.” He teased her and leaned back in his chair.

“I will then.” Suzy responded, going over who would be the right choice. Ross is a no, Arin doesn’t want to…

The dark haired gem came into her view, walking into the kitchen, opening a cabinet. Arin caught on to this quickly, sneaking a glare at her. “Don’t you dare.” He mouthed.

“Hey Dan, wanna help me show Kevin some fusion? We were thinking it could be a good lesson.” She proposed, watching him take a seat next to Arin at the table.

“Sure, if you want to.” He shrugged and stood back up onto his feet. “I haven’t fused in ages.”

All the gems gathered in the living room, Kevin watching upfront. Barry cleared his throat to stop the chatter. “Fusion is a very interesting topic.” He clapped his hands and glanced at Suzy and Dan stand up. “Two gems will align their energy and work to create a new gem. Both their physical features and emotional experiences will shape how this gem acts and works. The main point is working together when you fuse. Usually the longer you’re fused, the more they mix into one.” He explained the concept for fusing, glancing at the two.

Dan turned his attention towards Suzy and swayed his hips, cracking a grin back at her. She matched his movements, gem starting to glow. The two continued moving to their own beat, gems glowing brightly. Once they met, the light from the gems encased the two, beings starting to form into one.

Once fused, before the others stood a tall fused gem. Half their head was shaved with the other half was dark brunette curls and blonde streaks, ripped and mangled dark shirt, shorts, and two sets of arms. “Whoa.” The fusion muttered, voice sweet and lighter pitched, as they twirled around.

“Who… Do.. Do you know me?” Kevin asked softly, fiddling with the strings of his sweatshirt.

“Hey ya Kev, just call me Doozy! We couldn’t forget ya lovely!” The fusion chuckled, flexing their arms and bending backwards. “We are fucking hot.” They whispered, glancing back up at the others.

“Wanna see something cool?” Doozy asked.

Kevin nodded, eyes wide as he watched everything they did. He’s only heard about fusions, never seen any like this. Doozy was so stunning.

The fusion smiled gently, slipping one hand to each of their gems. They pulled out Suzy’s bright flail and Dan’s katana, forming a new weapon within a moment. The weapons formed together, creating a large club. “You like?” Doozy asked, swinging it around for example.

Arin stared with bright pink cheeks, more confused about who made this fusion so pleasing to look at. He didn’t or wouldn’t admit this but Doozy was… Nevermind. Ross snickered and pressed two fingers to his lips, whistling for the fusion.

Doozy laughed and peeked back at Ross, winking one of their dark eyes. “Thanks Ross, you’re such an asshole.” They sung out to him, resting one set of arms on their hips.

“Dooz gives the old razzle dazzle.” Ross whispered, trying not to laugh.

Barry cleared his throat, trying to catch their attention. “So, are you two going to unfuse at any point?” He asked, wary of the way they combed their fingers through their dark locks.

“Hm?” They asked through pursed lips, “Are you not excited? We haven’t fused with anyone in ages.” Doozy replied, quickly growing reluctant to leave. This was the only way Suzy could count as a real fusion.

“No, I just, this lesson looks like it’s over.” Barry argued, tone as calm as he could keep it. He was more of a passive guy at the end of the day. “Dan, Suzy-”

The fusion narrowed its eyes,  “I said, the name’s Doozy.” They replied. “What’s so difficult to understand about that? Hmm Barrrry?” Doozy learned forward, poking the orange gem’s arm and drawing out the name. “Should I question your name too?”

Barry quickly stepped back, growing more causos. “You two know I’d be better to stop this now.” He responded, glancing at Ross.

The blue gem quickly moved Kevin behind him, keeping a defensive stance. The more the fusion grew angered, guilt hit Arin like a brick. “Listen to me-”

“What about-”

“Suzy! I know what this is about!” Arin shouted, catching their gaze. “Don’t pin this on anyone but me.” He spoke up.

Doozy blinked, raising a brow, looking down at themselves. “What? What’s this about?” It asked quietly.

“Y-you wouldn’t know.” It responded to itself, clenching their fists.

“We can’t work together if you don’t talk to me.”

“Fus-ions don’t ‘talk’ to each other!” They raised their voice, sour tears starting to well up once more.

“This one does!” It shouted, voice growing different in tone the more out of sync they became.

There was a few moments of silence before another response. “I-I’m sorry.”

Within a moment, the fusion unraveled, flinging two gems onto the floor. Suzy attempted to stand, hiding her tears, feeling a hand on her shoulder. “Suzy… Hey, I know what’s wrong.” Dan whispered sympathetically. “We can fuse into Doozy anytime, promise me that you won’t cry. I’d hate to see you sad over that.”

She turned to him and wiped the tears, nodding. “Thank you Dan, really.” Suzy whispered.

“I know that they did pretty bad things but we’re not on Homeworld anymore. We’re earth gems now aren’t we? Our own people.” He muttered under his breath.

The green gem nodded and stood up, exhaling. “You’re a sap.” She joked softly.

Dan breathed out a short laugh. “I know.” He replied, glancing at Arin. “I’m just too damn sweet.”

Chapter Text

Rain pounded the roof with the drumming of pitter pitter, patter. The raven haired male sat up instantly from the warm sheets of his bed, running fingers through the dyed locks. That dream, he’s had it before. The one about the green gem.

Not that gems were new but this gem was different. He only knew Suzy being a gem of that color. In his dream it was a male. Every time it started the same, only showing more each time.

It started on the beach, each time he’d get up in a confused daze to find his glasses. Of course he’d end up crunching and shattering them under one of his sneakers in a blind panic. Then he’d curse at himself about not being able to get another pair and try to stumble forward. He could at least see his house in the distance, mostly just being a blur. He’d tense at a small noise behind him. Mark would swing around to meet eyes with a blurred green figure. “Ya lost?” They’d ask, voice thick with an accent. Odd, could gem’s have such accents?

“I uh, I’m okay.” He lied, trying to make out who this could be. He didn’t want to bother some stranger with this. His house wasn’t far, maybe he could make it without falling on his face,

No matter what he replied with, the green gem would quickly rush to his side to help him walk. “Humans have weird vision.” The gem whispered, holding onto Mark’s hand.

Mark would shake his head and stumble towards his home as the other gem gripped onto him, face flushing red. “You don’t have to walk me home, you do this to me every time.” He said this time, not caring much about how the dream went this time.

At that moment, the gem stopped, turning to him. “You understand?” He asked, breaking the pattern. “Ya are conscious in this dream?” He asked.

“Yeah… I’ve been for a while. Why are you asking?” Mark inquired, voice cracking. This dream just gets weirder and weirder by the minute. Maybe it meant something.

The other quickly used both hands to cuff Mark’s cheeks. “Mark, listen to me-”

“How do you know my name?” Mark raised one brow, confusion riddled through his tone.

“Shush! You know the crystal grumps, correct?” He asked.

Mark nodded, opening his mouth to speak before he was interrupted once more.

“Hey, shut your trap! I’m green diamond, I don’t have much time to tell you this and I don’t need to hear you blabbing.” Green diamond snapped, making sure the other was listening. “Homeworld gems are coming and I need to rely on you, alright?”

It took a few moments to register that Green diamond was talking to him before he nodded in response. “Y-yeah. You can count on me-wait, when can I see you again?”

“Soon, okay? You’re going to wake up soon and I can’t go into detail here.” He mumbled, letting go of the other’s cheeks. “Just… Be careful Mark.”

With that, the dream came to an end. He’d bolt out of bed as usual.

This time he was greeted with the rain pounding on his window. Just outside of it he could make out a figure jogging down the sidewalk. Must have gotten caught in the rain.

His attention turned to his bedside, sigh of relief coming out once he finds his glasses. “I swear, I always expect these to be smashed every time I wake up from that damn dream.” He mumbled, voice hoarse.

Mark slipped them on, sliding out of the bed and picking up the phone off it’s charger. Nothing but a few texts. Ross sent him a few random mashed up texts while Arin sent a few jokes but otherwise, it was nothing too exciting. His socked feet hit the wooden floors, sliding downstairs to the kitchen.

Sneaking a glance at the clock, it read seven o’ four. “Must be AM then.” He murmured as he opened the fridge and pulled out a jug of juice. He poured himself a glass before making his way back up the stairs.

He sat down on his computer chair, sinking into the chair and sipping on the juice. He took a small sip, glancing at the notifications from Youtube. “Again, nothing.” He sighed and turned around in the chair. What… What was that dream about? What did Homeworld want and why was Green Diamond talking to him through dreams.

Mark only knew a few homeworld gems that actually remember homeworld. Arin was one and was usually a shut in when it came to talking about them. Although, he’s been able to crack a good story out of him from time to time… Mostly when the other talked about how much he missed being in space. Suzy was also a homeworld gem but would only talk about certain topics, fusion made her tense, uneasy even. Dan doesn’t usually talk about his little time around Homeworld gems. Barry didn’t speak one word about Homeworld.

He peeked back towards the window, rain becoming a light drizzle. Maybe it’d clear up by the time the holidays roll around… All Mark needed to know was what Homeworld was. He needed to protect this planet too. Why didn’t they want to talk to him about these things? Was he not trustworthy? Shouldn’t humans help protect their planet as well?

There it was again, that question. Why can’t humans help? He’s asked each gem that question at least once. Suzy mostly sided with Barry, explaining that they fought plenty of danger and didn’t want Mark hurt. Ross usually shrugged, mumbling something about humans dying easily. Dan didn’t like to see people upset, meaning his answer was along the lines of: “We don’t want to drag you into anything Mark.” Arin on the other hand stuck to silence in the matter. He didn’t have the guts to ask Kevin, the guy was the newest on their team. The gems seemed to be watching over this gem even.

Chapter Text

The blue gem sighed, looking out of the large window. It’d cleared up around the afternoon, leaving a perfection afternoon to sit on the beach. He looked around his room, eyes meeting with the dark blue guitar. It was one of the few human inventions that he had. Not that he didn’t mind them, but this one was fascinating. After joining the grumps, he took to learning how to play this.

One of the best parts of earth was the music. He loved listening and singing along to all sorts of human music. Currently, something known as “rock” music was his interest.

He stood, grabbing the guitar on his way out of the room. He stopped, meeting eyes with the orange gem. “Hey Barry, I was just going to go outside and work on something.. Is that okay?” He asked, gripping the guitar.

Barry nodded and sneaked a glance at the instrument. “Yes, you don’t have to ask Dan.” He chuckled softly, moving past him to enter his own room.

“How could I forget that?” Danny nagged himself, pushing open the door. He glanced over towards Mark’s house, remembering that the other would be out of town for the day. He made his way down the beach and sat himself down on a flat rock. He propped the guitar on his knee, starting to strum something out. Random notes, testing what sounded alright.

“Hey Dan!” The pink gem that he knew as his best friend called, spotting the other playing. Arin loved listening to the other play or sing… It was beautiful to sit down and overhear the blue gem singing. Sometimes the radio would come on and he could listen to Danny sing along or hum softly, it was worth getting up for.

Danny looked up, watching the other jog down the waterfront. “Hey dude.” He got back to him. “I’m just working on some melodies, what are you doing out here?”

Arin returned with a light hearted shrug. “I heard you telling Barry about coming out here, thought I could keep you company if you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind at all.” He pat the spot on the rock next to him, enough room for the two to sit next to each other. “Sit. It’d be good to have some feedback on this stuff.”

Arin took a seat beside the gem, lips spread into a small smile. “What have you been up to?” He inquired. “Like, I mean, music wise..” He chuckled, rubbed his arm.

“I’ve been working something about space.. I kind of miss being out there.” Dan whispered, looking back down at his guitar. “It’s really amazing out there and all… Had Homeworld been different…” His face flattened, turning to Arin. “Oh-I’m sorry-”

“No, don’t be.” Arin stopped him, fiddling with his thumbs. “You’re not the only one who misses it, trust me.” A bitter chuckle escaped his lips. “Guess I’m too much of an ass to talk about this stuff to Ross or Kev.”

The blue gem shook his head and plucked a few strings on the instrument. “I don’t blame you, they never saw what Homeworld did. Pretty lucky that they didn’t have to go through that.” He strummed, humming along with the tune.

“We, are the crystal grumps.” He sung softly, catching Arin’s attention once more. “We’ll always save the day,”

“And if you don’t think we can, we’ll find a way.” He sung louder, glancing back up at the sky once more. “That’s why the people of this world believe in, Arin, Danny, Suzy, Barry, and Ross.” He stopped strumming, goofy grin spread across his face. “And Kevin.” Dan whispered.

Arin flashed a sincere smile, clapping softly for the other. “That’d make a cool theme.” He suggested.

Danny turned to his friend, laugh escaping his lips. “You think? I made it up on the spot really.” He tried to defend for how half assed it seemed. He could do better than that, really.

“Don’t sell yourself short Daniel.” The pink gem responded, leaning a bit more on the other gem. “I can’t make shit when I’m on the spot.” He laughed. “Anything sounds cool when you’re just sitting here strumming on this kickass guitar.”

“You… Want me to show you some chords?” Dan suggested, moving the guitar to rest on both their laps. Arin shifted and moved his hands, leaving one to work with. “Sure, show me all your tricks.” He joked lightheartedly.

The two sat, laughing and giggling as they messed with cords. It seemed to turn from teaching to messing around to make the dumbest songs they could. “Don’t doubt my music skill Daniel.” The brunette mumbled, sly smirk spreading across his lips.
Dan snorted a laugh, shaking his hand. “Oh, prove this skills to me Hanson.” He snickered, crossing his arms. The gem on his chest glowed faintly the more they connected.

Arin paused, clearing his throat. “I ammmm super goooood at siiiiinging.” He sung back jokily, laughs bubbling behind it. The pink gem that lye on his hand glowed a soft pink in return.

“Man, I’ll never beat that!” Dan pretend to whine, lifting one hand to his forehead, lips pursing to create a pout. “Alas, the majestic Arin has bested me once again!”

Both burst into laughs, leaning on each other for support, unaware of the light surrounding the both of them. It was natural, not something you had to prepare for… It was nice, well balanced.
A pair of light lavender eyes fluttered open, searching the beach in confusion. What… Why did he feel as if he was with someone in a different way? He glanced down at his hands… Was it him or did they seem larger even? The gem ran a few fingers over the gem on his hand, thoughts instantly racing. “Whoa…” It whispered once they’d recalled what happened. Their voice came smooth, well balanced. “We fused didn’t we?” He asked softly.

“Guess so.” He replied to himself, large grin spreading across his face. 

It was so thrilling and calming at the same time to be this close. “What do you wanna do about this?” He asked, unsure what to call himself even. I mean, they’ve only seen Doozy and she named herself. Should they name themselves as well?

Getting up, the fusion picked up the light guitar and started to wander back to their home. Must be a good place to start right? Inside the home, Ross sat on the couch fully stretched out and mashing buttons on a game controller.

As the door swung open, he paused the game, eyes widening to the size of silver platters. “Dan?... Arin?” He could vaguely make out the details in the fusion on the two. Blonde streak, brown curls… “You guys fused?!” He exclaimed.

He nodded, twirling around for him. “Yeah! What do you think?!” They asked, glancing at Ross.

“One question,” Ross crossed his arms and set the controller down. “Why don’t any of you guys fuse with me?” He asked, trying to keep his voice from drifting into a whine.

The paused, taking a moment to speak on each other’s behalf. “Well, we don’t mix in those ways really.” He replied, holding the guitar close in one hand.
“Barry, come see this shit. Bring Kevin.” Ross called, getting on his feet. “I call this, Anny-no-no, Darin!” He waved his hands and snickered.
The orange gem let out a content sigh, standing up from the table. “What is it Ross?...” He trailed off, looking up towards the fusion. “Dan? Arin?” He asked.
Darin nodded, taking a liking to the name. “Are you guys excited? This is fun! Isn’t it?” They turned towards the warp, watching their green gem friend warp in. Next to her, Kevin stared at their fusion with a speechless expression. It may not have extra parts like how Doozy did, but fusion was such an interesting idea.

She blinked, staring with widened eyes. “Arin! Dan!” She exclaimed, lips curling upwards. “You two… Look so cool!” Suzy congratulated them. Any fusion in this home was worth an A+ in her book.

“Thanks you guys, honestly, we’re-I’m not sure what to do… This is the first time we fused and it was on accident too. Should we unfuse?” They asked, looking for suggestions.

Suzy shook her head, “No! If you’re happy, you can be fused for however long you want. Go have some fun as Darin, you’ll like it. Promise.” She help up a supportive thumbs up, glancing at Barry for backup of some kind.

“I agree with her, you guys should have a good time.” He nodded, crossing his arms. “Besides, they could use something like this as a stress reliever.” He thought.

The purple fusion grinned ear to ear, darting outside. With the wind through flowing through his hair, nothing holding him back.  Dust and dirt shifted under their feet as they ran blindly past the shoreline. “Where to?...” Darin asked, looking around once he was met with sidewalk.

“Hey mister?...” A small child’s voice asked, looking up at them with widened brown eyes. The fusion swung around with a large smile, bending over to meet eye level with a purple haired girl. “Hey ya sweetie!” They greeted her.
“What… What’s that?” She asked, leaning forward and tapping the gem on his chest. Her lips stayed curled into a faint smile, tracing her thumb over the gem.
He glanced down, holding out his hand to show his other gem. “These are my gems! They’re apart of me you know.” He replied, overhearing a giggle escape her lips.
“Are they like… Parents?” She asked, eyes full of wonder as she snuck a glance at him.

Darin laughed and shrugged. “Well, think of it like… Picture two cool guys and one day they come together and make me!” He tried to explain, realizing how suggestive that sounded.
“You mean like… My parents?” She asked, watching the gem’s face flush a dark purple. “So, does that mean that they love each other?” She questioned him.

“I-erm-well, maybe in a different way sweetie!” He stuttered for words, growing flustered by the minute. His cheeks stayed a violet aura, awaiting for the girl to answer.

“It’s okay if you don’t tell me!” The small child tried to grin until she noticed something behind the fusion. Her face flattened, instantly trying to hide behind Darin. He noticed, trying to turn back around. “N-No, don’t move!” She whispered, face flushing darker.

Darin raised a brow and chuckled once he understood. Behind him stood a tall with a bright red shirt. He looked into one of the windows of the shops, not noticing the two there. “Oh! I understand now… You liike him!” He sung out, watching her fuss.
She raised her arms, not noticing the boy’s attention drifting to her. “Don’t! He might hear you!” The purple haired girl replied in a tone drifting above a whisper.

The boy started her, walking across the street and glancing at the fuson. “Hey Tiff, I thought you said you were busy today…” He mumbled, tilting his head to the side.

“I-That’s not what I mean!” She responded quickly, words growing harder to come out. “R-Red please don’t take it like that-”

“Hello, Red is it?” Darin interrupted, holding his hand out and standing back up to tower over the two children. “I think she meant that she WAS busy.” He answered for her.

Tiff nodded quickly and glanced at her old friend. “Yeah, that’s what I was trying to t-tell you.” Her cheeks lit up to a light rosy red as her pointer found a strand of hair to twirl.

The other raised a brow, small smile spreading across his lips. “You’re a funny girl Tiff.” He swallowed his words and reached out slowly, gripping his hand in hers. “W-well I heard that they got this cool game at the arcade, I was thinking you and I could see what the buzz was about.”

Darin watched the two kids walking, talking naturally, anxiety bubbling down into conversation. “Kids these days…” The fusion spoke under his breath, resting a hand on his chest. The other hand gripped the blue guitar, watching the kids until they became distant.

He turned back around and wandered through the city, smile fading. Why… Why did he feel so alone? “Are… You okay?” He asked softly, looking down at the gems. “Yes, I mean, don’t stop.” He replied to himself, ignoring where his feet took him.

The brunette looked up at the small park that he’d sauntered into. It was in the centre of town, not too big but it tied the place together. The middle supported a fountain with a couple of benches around it, cement pathways, a swingset and slide, and plenty of full grown trees.

He walked over to one of the benches, sitting down and starting to strum on the guitar. “We, are the crystal grumps.” He sung softly, closing his eyes and focusing on the music.

Darin sang, strumming on the instrument the whole time. He didn’t notice the few people gathering around to listen to the fusion. “That’s why the people of this world believe in, Arin, Danny, Suzy, Barry, and Ross.” He paused and stopped playing. His eyes fluttered open, heart stopping. “And K-Kevin…” He mumbled, letting out a shaky breath at the people.

A few clapped, others cheered. Naturally, Dan wasn’t too bad with performing in front of others but he’s never sung in front of a whole lot of people. Arin was a bit different, having never had the courage to flat out sing. He’s never seen himself to be all that good, Jon was good, Danny is good at it. He just…

The fusion yelped, the two gems unfusing and being throwing to opposite sides of each other. They stared at each other, eyes wide open. The people didn’t react much different, growing more lost once both men burst into laughter.

It was late when they walked home, Dan lugging the guitar with him. “We make a good pair don’t we, Arin?” He teased him, feet creating footprints in the sand as they walked up the porch.

His cheeks flushed red, making him turn away. “Whatever Daniel.” Arin grumbled, crossing his arms. “Don’t get too cocky.”

Chapter Text

Ross watched the window, face deadpan as he slipped one hand under his chin. His mouth opened as a yawn slipped out. How come everyone suddenly became “busy” when he wanted to hang or talk?

Sorry Ross, Arin and I were hanging. Maybe next time buddy?

Sorry Ross, Kevin needs my help. You don’t need to bother yourself with it.

Ross, don’t worry about me, I’m sure someone needs you. What about Mark or something?

This is the one day that I record this week, how about later?

In other words, no one wanted to be around him. He knew that sometimes he could be pushy or frustrating but it seemed a little much to avoid him. Well, it felt like everyone was avoiding him. “I’ll find my own fun then.” He murmured and stood up. “Maybe I’ll even take a visit to my old home.”

He slipped out the door and huffed, walking out the door. “What if I just disappeared, would they look for me? No, they’d probably not realize it for hours.” He grumbled.

It was dark enough for someone to be lost at this time, leaving the gem on his forehead to almost glow in the dark. At least it was useful for something. He walked in the dark, noticing the people that were still out. The town was moderately busy for a Tuesday.

He shoved his hands in his pockets, looking around for something to occupy him. What was it about him that made the gems treat him like he knew nothing? Sure, he wasn’t a Homeworld gem but he was smart enough to connect the dots about Homeworld.

Ross picked up the pace, tensing at the sound of footsteps behind him. The aqua gem swung around in a huff-nothing. “Must… Just be hearing things.” He murmured, walking quicker than before.

A few minutes until there was another noise. He quickly turned around, eyes searching for something. The only thing he could see under the street lamps was a squirrel. It scampered off quickly, leaving him tense. The brunette didn’t wait a moment before he summoned the jagged shovel from his gem. An odd weapon he’ll admit it but there was a certain charm to it.

He broke into a full sprint, not willing to risk anything. Full blown steps came after him, making sure he wasn’t stopping. He felt his face lose color at the feeling of a silver star nicking his jacket. The clothing teared, making sure that he needed to fix that later.

With no time to stop, breaths quick, he raced back home. The shovel was used to deflect the oncoming stars, leaving him surprised that he hasn’t poofed yet. The sight of home in the distance left a shimmer of hope, legs growing tired and weak. “Barry! Arin! Dan! Suzy!” He huffed out names in hopes of someone hearing.

There wasn’t time to check who was behind him. His hopes raised as the door flung open, showing the gems rushing outside. “Holy hell Ross, where have you been?!” Suzy asked, eyes widening at the other figure.

He rushed down the beach, taking one moment to turn to see the other. Ross met eyes with a tall figure with a full face mask-Poof. The aqua gem felt an arrangement of stars run through his chest once his guard was lowered. The round blue gem fell onto the beach, weapon disappearing along with his physical form. “Ross!” Barry shouted, quick to push Kevin behind him and to form his shield.

Suzy reached out slowly to pick up the round poofed gem, sad eyes as she held onto him. Arin watched the male in front of them, summoning the handgun and watching the gem. “Careful, we don’t know what he’s capable of-”

“Brian!” The blue gem shouted once he made it outside, having not seen the display from earlier. The figure looked up, raising a brow as he was tackled to the ground. “I thought you were dead!” The tall male exclaimed, catching the other’s attention. “I can’t believe we’re both alive!”

Arin lowered his weapon, watching Dan gush on in pure happiness. Suzy looked down to Ross’s gem and tilted her head to the side. “You don’t think that this, ‘Brian’ is a Homeworld gem as well?” She asked him.

He shrugged, watching Barry lower his shield carefully but not moving from in front of Kevin. “What was Ross doing out this late?” He asked.

“Hell if I know, I was just leaving my room when he stomped outside.” Arin replied, eyes wandering towards the gem in Suzy’s hands. “Goddamn it Ross.” He whispered under his breath.

“Guys! This is Brian!” Dan called, climbing off the other. “He doesn’t talk… Ever really.” He chuckled nervously, feeling put off by the saddened demeanor of the room. “You guys okay?”

Suzy held up the gem, chewing on her bottom lip. “Ross was poofed by him.” She whispered, holding it in both hands.

His face flattened, turning instantly to Brian. “Brian! Why did you poof Ross?! I know that he’s satanic but that’s not cool!” He shouted, lips curling downwards.

Brian stared at the other gem, crossing his arms. He never spoke. Ninja’s did not speak. Rather, talking to Dan telepathically was much better. “These gems, you trust them?”

He nodded and crossed his arms. “Of course I do! They’re my friends, they helped me out of the box!” Dan replied, having not noticed that the other’s couldn’t hear Brian.

“Gems like them put you in there, had you stayed-”

Dan narrowed his eyes and stood his ground with the other. “Brian! I’m a crystal grump, we protect earth now. You know I couldn’t live under those insane gems!”

There was a few moments of pure silence before the masked gem nodded. “Yes, you are different Avidan. I can’t change how you feel. Tell your friends an apology for poofing, ‘Ross’.” He held up his fingers for air quotes, voice aggravated to apologize. He knew Dan would make him anyways.

The brunette nodded, turning to the others with his grin back. “He says that he’s sorry about poofing Ross! Don’t worry, Brian is cool, I promise!” He looked around for support, worry bubbling up at the skeptical looks he was given. “Guys, he’s been there for me for a long time. Please believe me.”

Barry opened his mouth to reply, “I-”

“I believe you Dan.” Arin spoke up, looking over at the orange gem with hope. “Barry, you know Dan wouldn’t try to bring danger into the house.” He argued.

Suzy nodded and glanced at the aqua gem, “What do you think Ross will think even?” She asked, looking all over at the smooth gem.

“We won’t know until he comes back.” Kevin whispered from behind Barry, sneaking a glance at Dan who seemed to be having a conversation with the new gem.

Ross waited three days before he was back, forming in the kitchen around breakfast. “Miss me?” He asked, sly smirk spreading across his lips. He stretched, stopping cold once he spotted Brian standing in the doorway.

“Fuck me.” He whispered, frozen in place from fear.

“If you wanted, you could have asked.” Brian thought, walking past the aqua gem. He hadn’t known that the gem could understand him.

Ross chuckled and folded his arms over his chest. “Well, excuse me for wanting something without asking.” He chuckled. “Don’t act like you don’t want some RubberRoss.”

Brian stopped in his tracks, turning to the other. “You, Ross, you understand me?” He asked. Only ninja’s could hear other ninja’s if they were in Brian’s case. That case was that he couldn’t speak, he’s learned of other ways to speak but only Ninja’s such as Dan could hear. Brian has heard of kindergarten gems made to be like them but they were never used.

Ross nodded. “Yes, I can hear you. What’s the big deal?” He asked.

“The big deal is that you must be a ninja gem. Most of them are dead. Now, how the fuck are you living?” He questioned him.

“I, I’m a kindergarten gem.. I was made late, another gem was made before me.. But she’s passed.” He answered and looked down to his fingers.

Brian reached out, rested his hand on Ross’s shoulder. “I understand how you feel exactly.” He replied. “We’ve all lost more than we can count.”

Chapter Text

A few gems sat, sprawled on the couch. Arin found himself staring at the television screen, mashing buttons on the controller. When Mark compared his weapon to something from “Megaman”, the raven haired human brought over a copy for the pink to gem to play. He’s been focused on it in his free time lately, persistent on beating it.

Suzy sat next to him with Kevin on her left, watching the screen. “Did you hear, we’ve got a mission today.” She broke the silence. Watching Arin play Megaman was proving to be a bore after an hour.

This caught Kevin’s gaze, turning to her in wonder. “Really? Will any of you fuse?!” Was it obvious that he wanted to see more fuse? Or even fuse himself? After all, he’s only seen two fusions in his lifetime. That would be Doozy and Darin.

She shrugged her shoulders. “Possibly, Barry said that we’re taking down a communication hub from Homeworld. That could mean that we’ll need to fuse.”

A laugh came from the stairway, showing Ross to be standing there with his arms crossed and the two ninja gems behind him. It could’ve been ripped straight from an anime. “You guys should fuse with Brian.” He suggested, moving one hand to his hip.

“I haven’t fused with anyone in ages.” The yellow gem replied, shooting his intimidating glance towards Ross and then to Dan on his right. “Not to mention, I’m sure they’d like NSP.”

At this point, the gems knew of Brian’s silence and much rather let Ross or Dan interpret. Of course Ross always changed what Brian said, therefore it was much better to ask Dan.

“Who’s NSP?” Ross questioned and turned towards the ninja.

“NSP is what we call the fusion of Brian and me. He’s just for destruction really.” Dan explained, a nervous chuckle escaping from the back of his throat. “But if we had a third gem to balance Brian’s destruction, we could tackle this mission pretty fast.”

Ross instantly cleared his throat to hint it, “Well, I’m here.” He spoke up, sly smirk spreading across his lips.

“Not yet Rubber.” Brian smirked behind his mask at his nickname for the aqua gem, reaching out and patting the other on the head. “You’d need more training before a ninja fusion.”

Danny nodded. “Hey Bri, I was thinking, how about Arin to balance it? My fusion with him is totally stable! We could all fuse and take down the hub in minutes!”

Brian paused, thinking over the idea for a few moments. “That… Actually isn’t a bad idea.” He replied, walking with the gems to the warp. He was tuning out Barry at this point.

The group was met with a barren desert like area. In front of them was a large crystal tower. “This is a Homeworld communication hub.” The orange gem gestured to the said tower. “We need to take it out before the signals intercept human broadcasting.” He explained.

“Barry, Ross suggested fusion.” Dan started up, hinting at his idea. “Brian and I were hoping Arin would want to fuse with us.”

The pink gem instantly glanced at them, nodding. “If it’s cool with Barry, I’m in.” He replied. Why would they pick him? Was there something desirable about him?

“That could work actually....” Barry responded, still cautious of what they could create. Fusion was like gambling when it was new. “We can give it a try.”

The three gems nodded, starting to work to synchronize their movements. They worked with Brian leading for the most part with Arin taking the lead for a few bits. Soon the light had swallowed the gems, forming a taller fusion.

The fusion stared down with two pairs of eyes, each supporting blues, pinks, and yellows. They were tall enough to have three pairs of arms, each arm having dark black finger-less gloves and ribbon blowing in the wind. The whole costume was a variety of yellow’s, blues, and pinks. A dark black bandanna hid away two mouths.

They bent over, inspecting the gems with a glare before the look softened. “Looks like we’ve got an audience!” He shouted in a booming voice, using one of the gem’s voices. “Well, thoughts?” He asked them all, asking in another voice.

There were no words to explain this fusion. Everyone stood in silence, causing the other to bellow in laughter. “Ha! Looks like we left ‘em fucking speechless!” He bent back, twirling his mid section arms. The fusion lit up once they saw Ross, cheeks puffed out, arms crossed, jealousy written all over his face.

He picked up the aqua gem by his shirt, watching him squirm to get down. “Aw, why ya actin’ like such a baby rubber?” He asked, both mouths curling into a smirk.

Ross looked up, shooting a glare back at him. “Don’t call me that.” He complained.

“D’aw, wittle itty bitty Rossy wossy is jealous of how amazing a fusion like Starbomb can be.” They flexed a few arms, flashing their sharp teethed smile under the bandana.

“Aren’t you supposed to be doing a JOB!” Ross argued, snapping the gem’s back from gloating. “Maybe I don’t like Starbomb because I haven’t seen how ‘cool’ he is.”

Starbomb smirked, setting the gem down with no regard for his safety. “Fine, you wanna see some shit, you’ll see some shit.” They swung around, slipping one hand towards the gem on their chest.

They pulled out a large pink bomb with a yellow star on it. It should have been straight from a Saturday morning cartoon. Starbomb took two fingers to light the explosive, tossing it behind them with no regards of the others. Barry’s eyes widened, instantly pulling the gems behind him and summoning his shield large enough to protect the gems from the blast.

Suzy stared, hand over her gem with fear. Ross blinked, feelings mixed between jealousy and awe. Kevin peeked from behind the shield to stare at the fusion awestruck. “A-are you mad?!” Barry shouted, rage building.

Starbomb swung around, crossing a pair of arms. “Mad? Baby, we’ve just fucking started!” They shouted, laughter bubbling up. “You all paid for front row seats!” Starbomb ran a few fingers through his hair and used one mouth to sing out, the other spitting out rhymes along with it.

“No we’re not!” Barry argued, turning towards the warp. “When you three get your heads together and stop acting crazy, I’ll come back!” He grumbled, grabbing Kevin’s wrist to pull him along.

“But Barry, what about Starbomb?” He asked.

“He can get home on his own, when he’s done with his ‘concert’.” Ross replied, walking alongside Barry in the same aggravated stride. “Where do they get off?! Calling me rubber like I’m kid!” He complained.

“Ross, wasn’t it your idea for them to fuse in the first place?” Suzy spoke up, tone none the pleased. “Perhaps you should have thought it through.”

The aqua gem was silent the rest of the warp. Once they’d gotten home, he walked over towards the door. “Where are you going-” Barry started.

“Mark’s house.” He answered, opening the door.

The orange gem stopped him, sighing and resting a hand on Ross’s shoulder. “Take Kevin with, please Ross.”

Ross paused, glancing at Kevin and nodded. “Alright, I guess I can.” He grumbled and opened the door for the other. “So Kev, let’s go see Mr Iplier.” He murmured.

At the steps, the smaller gem knocked, rolling back on his heels. “Do you think he’s okay with us coming over?” Kevin asked quietly.

Ross nodded and leaned on the side of the home, moving once the door swung open. “Hey guys! What are you all doing over here? Barry said you’d all be on a mission-”

“Starbomb is handling it.” Ross interrupted, crossing his arms.

Mark raised a brow, tilting his head to the side and letting the two in. “Who’s that-” Stopping him this time was the ground shaking, knocking Kevin to his knees. “Another quake?” Mark grumbled, gripping onto a counter until his balance returned. “They’ve been going on for almost an hour now.”

The aqua gem felt himself grow cold, looking to his feet. “That’s probably… Starbomb.” He answered. “Starbomb is a huge fusion of Arin, Dan, and Brian. They are… Using bombs to destroy a Homeworld hub. I think the whole damn thing is out of control.” He explained, watching Mark think over it.

He nodded slowly, taking in the information. “Hey, can I ask you something? This might be off topic, but it’s kind of important.” He fiddled with his fingers, clearing his throat. “Can-can gems project themselves into dreams maybe? Like, talk to you through one?” He asked.

Ross raised a brow. “I.. I’m not sure, but I think Barry has mentioned gems having powers like that. Usually only fusions or diamonds have such strong powers though… Why do you ask?”

Mark fiddled with his glasses, sighing softly. “I was just wondering. Don’t worry about it!”

“Okay Mark-”

The ground rumbled, growing closer, violent. “WHERE’D MY AUDIENCE GO?!” An enraged voice screamed, feet stomping into the earth once more. “WHY’D THEY LEAVE ME OUT THERE?!”

Barry and Suzy ran outside, eyes widening to see the fusion. “We didn’t leave you!” She shouted, not waiting another moment to summon her flail.

Ross glanced at Kevin, clenching his fists. “Mark, keep Kevin safe. Starbomb needs to be handled.” He announced, scrambling to his feet and summoning his shovel. Mark nodded, inching to the window for a peek-”Whoa…” He whispered.

“You three need to unfuse this instant.” Barry ordered, holding his shield out.

The fusion barrelled in laughed, cracking their knuckles. “Unfuse?! As if baby! Not a fan of Starbomb? Well, shit, fuck, you’re straight outta luck! Cause he’s around to stay!” They boomed, stomping their onto the sand.

It glanced at Barry, slamming their foot down over him. He couldn’t move quick enough to dodge, instead using his shield to try to stop the foot from crushing him. “ARIN! DAN! BRIAN! Please, you guys are losing yourselfs!” He shouted, arms growing tired.

Starbomb laughed, smirking and pressing their foot down. “Can you guess what’s coming next?!” He asked. “You guessed it right, Barry’s spotlight is going to go out!” The fusion was about to finally press all his weight on the gem until Ross cleared his throat.

“Hey! Big man! You want a real challenge?! Fight me instead!” The aqua gem ordered, gripping the shovel tight in his hands. “If I win, the three of you will be unfused. You win, I-I’ll let you smash me.” He stood his ground, trying to hide the fear eating at him.

The fusion chuckled, hands slipping up to pull the bandana off. “Alright, fine rubber. Come on, you know what it’s time for?” He asked, cracking each of his knuckles. “Time, to, motherfucking SMASH!” Starbomb screamed, hands slipping towards both gem’s on it’s chest to pull out brightly colored swords.

Ross didn’t wait a moment, darting at the gem. The tall fusion raised their foot, kicking the gem back. “ROSS!” Suzy screamed, catching their attention.

“Oh! Don’t worry about the runt!” They shouted, picking her up with a free hand, watching her squirm. “Keep quiet, would ya?” The fusion asked, slipping the green gem into the over sized pocket of their jacket. “Hey!” She shouted, voice muffled as she struggled to climb out of the fusion’s jacket.

Barry looked over at the crumbling pile that Ross climbed out of, trying to stumble to him weakly. “Ross, please, don’t do this. I can handle him-”

“No Barry.” Ross stood up, cracking his knuckles. “I have to do this.” He mumbled, stepping forward.

Starbomb chuckled, blades risen. “Oh, someone come back for another dish of ass whooping? Go ahead runt!” He screamed, swinging the blades.

The gem dodged, slipping behind the gem and boosting himself onto the gem’s multicolored sneakers. “Hey! Where are you going runt?!” He asked, swinging their mid section around to snatch up the gem. Ross moved from the hand, slamming his shovel into the fusion’s large hand.

He yelped, pulling his hand back and making an audible snarl. “I SWEAR IF YOU DON’T STOP SQUIRMING! I’ll crush you and swallow your lousy gem whole!” Starbomb boomed, using his free hands in attempts to pull Ross off.

Ross held the shovel between his teeth, both hands gripping onto the fusion as he climbed. He grunted, climbing as fast as he could, almost like the feeling of an ant crawling up you. At this point, Starbomb flung into rage and panic at the feeling of Ross struggle. “Alright bugger-hold still!” He hissed, one hand sweeping Ross off his back.

“Gotcha!” The fusion smirked, opening the palm of his hand to meet eyes with the squirming gem. “Who do you think you are?! Some big guy?! HA! Some puny kindergarten runt is going to stop the power of us?!”

“N-no…” Ross stood slowly, “A ninja in training is going to save three assholes that have lost it!” He screamed, fighting off the pink painted nails of the fusion and climbing up it’s arm.

“STOP!” Starbomb shouted, attempting to shake the gem off. The brunette didn’t slow, using the last bits of energy to climb up his shoulders, pulling himself up with matted locks of brown hair. He bit harder onto his shovel between his teeth, fighting to not lose balance.

“You’re gonna regret this!” Starbomb used his last attempted to shake the gem, stumbling to keep his balance. They used all arms in attempts to surround and catch the gem. He made his way to the top of the fusion, gripping the shovel. “I’m doing this for you guys!” Ross screamed, huffing. With all hands around the gem, it slammed into the gem, smacking itself with the swords it’d been holding.

The fusion unraveled, three gems being flung out in a daze. As Starbomb unfused, Suzy fell from the jacket, hitting the beach. She groaned, looking around in pure confusion. The three lay on the beach, almost motionless. “W-wait… Where’s Ross?!” She asked, searching for the other.

“Hey Suz…” A familiar voice called, climbing out of the water. “I’m okay, really-”

She instantly wrapped her arms around him, “Thank you!” She pulled away, instantly stern. “But do NOT do that again!” She hissed.

Arin sat up, groaning in pain. “Brian, what the fuck?” He complained, rubbing his side.

“I wasn’t the one who thought that was a good idea to catch Ross like that.” The yellow gem hissed back, stumbling to his feet. “What’s up with you two and over doing the tricks?!”

“I was not over doing the tricks!” Dan complained, arms heavy.

“Oh really?!” Arin argued, getting up. “You were clearly the one who thought all the switching around would be fun!”

“I wasn’t the one who threw a hissy fit when they left! That was clearly Brian and you!” He sighed, running fingers through his hair. “You two are going to get me cracked.” The blue gem whispered.

Brian ignored the further bickering, stumbling to his feet and slowly stepping towards Ross. The other looked over, eyes widening. “Brian-”

“Good job today.” The ninja stopped him, crossing his arms and smirking. “Rubber.”

Chapter Text

The orange gem pursed his lips together, watching the green gem step onto another warp. “This one isn’t working, still.” She mumbled, crossing her arms. Her eyes shined with worry as she stepped down. “They’ve all been broken for weeks. Kev helped us last time too.”

He sighed and turned away looking over the ocean surrounding the warp. “Suzy, I-I’ve been having visions… Well, I’m positive that Homeworld is trying to come here. The other day, during the whole Starbomb thing, I found that the hub was attempting to be used.” He explained, watching the tide roll over.

She paused and stepped closer, rubbing a hand over the green gem. “Barry… Please, I’m sure that Homeworld shut themselves away from this planet.”

“Then how are other gems showing up here?” He asked, crossing his arms tight over his chest. “Like Brian… I mean, we spent a whole year to leave Dan just out there!” He tensed, shoulders shaking. “I mean, the guys are great but Starbomb put me on edge… Brian was the unstable one and when you mash him with two other gems, their fusions are insane. What if-What if Kevin was-”

“Orange diamond, you shut your mouth this instant!” She spoke up, placing both hands on her shoulders. “I need you to calm down please Barry.”

“D-don’t call me that.” He whispered, rubbing under one of his dark eyes. “I don’t want to be known for that… Jon said-”

“I know what Jon said Barry!” She let another sigh escape her lips. “He said plenty of things that I’d love to hear again… Like that we matter, that I’m not a mistake…” She trailed off, chewing on her bottom lip. “I can’t help what happened to him, but I can help what happens now. You know that I won’t let a soul lay a hand on Kevin.” She moved her hands off him and flipped dark locks out of her eyes.

“I-Thank you Suzy..” Barry took a deep breath and glanced once more at the warps around them. “I suppose that I just feel exposed with all these around.”

She nodded. “You’re not alone, I can promise you that.” She stepped over towards the only working one. “Let’s head on home, once the sun rolls around Kevin will be up.”

He chuckled and stepped on the pad. “And I thought Ross would be the only gem that sleeps.” He mumbled. “I still need to thank him for all that Starbomb shit.”

The two gems warped into the room, walking into Dan sitting beside Arin on their old couch, laughing and going on. “Hey guys!” The blue gem greeted, snorting in laughter.

Barry flashed a smile and stepped into the living room. “Where’s the others?” He asked, looking around the empty room.

“Ross is being a lazy ass in his room, Kevin passed out on his bed, and Brian hasn’t left his room for a while. Dan thinks the guy is just messing around in there.” Arin spoke up, pausing his game and looking up at them. “What were you guys up to?”

“Checking warps.” Barry replied. “I thought we missed one, just wanted to be careful.”

He nodded, turning to the screen. “If Homeworld wanted to come here, they would’ve years ago.” The brunette whispered, glancing at Dan. “I mean, who knows if they even care about us anymore.”

“Do you think they’d ever try to come?” Dan asked, eyes focused on the screen.

Arin shrugged his shoulders back and blew a strand of hair out of his eyes. “It’s possible… Really possible.” He answered, flopping back onto the couch. “They were brutal afterall. Yellow diamond might be set on finding us… OR he doesn’t care much anymore.”

“Is it just him there now?” He asked.

“As far as I know, yes. Orange diamond died in battle and… J-Blue Diamond died on earth as well.” The pink gem swallowed, grunting at the game. “Wait, there’s another diamond too. Green diamond, he manages punishing rebels like us. I don’t know what ever happened to the guy in the end.”

Dan nodded and ran a few fingers through his dark locks. “Hey Arin, you’re a Homeworld gem aren’t you?” He asked in a quiet tone.

“Yeah, I am. Why do you ask?” Arin questioned, sneaking a glance at him.

With his curiosity peaked, Dan pressed with more questions. “I was just wondering, what did you do there exactly? I’ve never actually been told what you’ve done there.”

“Traveling… Well, I ran along side in a few projects here and there.” He listed off, chewing on his bottom lip. The other felt himself grow cold, clearing his throat. “Can I ask, what projects?”

“Ones on fusion… I wasn’t in, huge ones… Not like the one’s I’ve heard of, like the ninja project or the kindergarten of course. They never let me see that.” He replied, crossing his legs and sitting up on the couch. Back on Homeworld he was much different than today. Most on the planet shamed gems that shape shifted to fix themselves, leaving him to use their devices to improve his short height. Of course, the day that this gem met Jon, he remembered being told it was okay to fix a few things… Now the gem stood to be almost as tall as Dan.

Dan felt a sigh of relief escaped his lips, nodding. “At least Homeworld didn’t drag him into that mess.” He thought to himself, visibly relaxing.

Small green circular like robots slowly gathered around the largest warp, pasting it together almost. Within a few minutes it was fixed and running with ease. It glowed for a few moments before a tall dark haired male warped into the home. “Main warp to ‘earth’ seems to be working now at full capacity.” He mumbled, pulling up screens.

He took a few steps, switching the screen to a camera like view. “Holly, are you coming in with this feed?” He asked, slight annoyance in his tone as he inspected the picture. “I have arrived to this miserable planet. Must I refer to you with such an idiotic name?”

A pink female gem flashed on the screen, nodding. “Yes, you heard what Yellow diamond said. He said that we must use some sort of code name, you know this Mattew.”

He narrowed his eyes and stepped forward to survey the area. “Well, tell him that I’d like for him to take his code names and-”

“I suggest you not finish that Matt.” She teased, chuckling. “Just get in there and check on the plans.” Holly informed.

The green gem nodded, “And what if I run into those so called ‘Crystal grumps’?” His floating fingers made quotes, showing the little intimidation they gave him.

“Don’t worry about them. Most of them were reported to have died off a few years ago. Once you’re done with this, report back and others will be sent. Over and out.” The pink gem cut out, leaving the gem to himself.

A bright green gem stumbled towards the earth warp, side aching. “Son of a bitch.” He murmured, slipping past gems. “Yellow diamond… I know you mean well… But I can’t live like this.” He thought, not taking another moment before stepping into the warp.

He stumbled forwards hissing with little realization to where he was. He was met with a large tower, warps around him. “Broken, broken, broken.” The gem mumbled.

The gem sighed, noticing the land in the distance. “This is, this is the town that Mark is from.” He whispered, glancing at the water. It couldn’t be that bad of a swim, could it? There wasn’t much time to doubt himself before he jumped into the icy water.

It was lucky that he wasn’t human or he’d be having more problems with this. The swim felt like hours of kicking his feet in freezing water. After this, he’s going to punch that idiot for living in such a remote town.

Walking outside was the raven haired boy, rolling up his jeans before walking out onto the shorefront. He bent over, picking up a large twig, drawing shapes and lines in the sand. “Mark!”

His head shot up, searching for who was calling for him. Was someone there? He turned around, adjusting his glasses, brown eyes widening. Standing hunched over and coughing water was the green gem. The one from his dreams! “A-are you-”

“Shut your mouth.” Green diamond breathed out, patting his chest. “Don’t look at me like a blubbering idiot.” He grumbled, rubbing one of his eyes.

Mark nodded and reached out, helping the other quickly. “You, uh, weren’t kidding huh?” He asked in a soft chuckle. “You really were coming here.”

The other turned away, walking quickly with the human. “I hate to tell you but I’m not the only one coming. I wasn’t lying Mark.” He replied, voice bitter.

He felt his blood run cold, swallowing and opening the door to his small home. “W-what do you expect me to do about Homeworld?” He asked, voice stuck in a whisper. “What would I tell the grumps!?”

“Slow down and relax before you blow something.” Green diamond held up his hands, sitting down on the couch to catch his breath. “You’d tell them about Homeworld coming.” He whispered. Someone had to stay rational here.

Mark sat down next to him in a huff, running fingers through his hair. “I… I’m only one human.” He whispered, looking to his feet. “Pathetic huh?” A bitter chuckle escaped his lips.

The gem was quiet, grunting. “If you think of yourself like that, than yes.” He answered. It took a moment to register how harsh that sounded before he cleared his throat. “I mean, you need to think higher of yourself. Humans can be… Useful.”

“For what exactly?” Mark asked, glancing at the gem on his couch.

He let out a long sigh. “You need more self esteem.” Green diamond mumbled bitterly. “Just… Calm down for a few minutes. Alright?” He needed some silence. Some time to think… Think about how he just left his home planet. “You really owe me.” The green haired gem whispered.

Chapter Text

Sorting through the aqua gem’s room sat a smaller gem, his gem placed firmly on his nose. Next to him an orange gem summoning his shield, pushing junk aside. “I wish Ross would actually clean this, well, It’d be better if he didn’t hoard this human junk.” Barry grumbled, glancing over at Kevin.

“Hey Barry, is there a reason that you’re looking for this light cannon?” Kevin asked quietly, picking up an old flyer. It’s once vibrant white was now a corn yellow, faded words reading: Fourth of July Paluza. The recent memory of July 4th rang in his mind, recalling when Ross thought it’d be a good idea to ask Arin to fling him into the ocean using the light cannon.

Barry paused, pursing his lips together. “Well, I just thought it might be a good idea to have it on us. It’s not like Jon will get us more.” He replied, using the shield to push the broken remains of a chair aside. “How Ross lives in this junk baffles me…” He trailed off, spotting a locked wooden box.

It was a large chest type wood box, painted white with several delicate wing like designs painted on the chest. In the middle was a golden lock, showing that it needed some sort of key. He traced a finger along the box, taking note that it’s been opened recently. On the top it was engraved, Property of commander Tugtupite.

If he had one, his heart would have stopped and he would have dropped dead right there. Barry could almost feel his gem crack in millions of pieces and shatter. Where… Where did Ross get this? “He’s not from-”

“Barry! I found the light cannon!” Kevin spoke up, catching Barry’s attention. The small gem pushed aside an old tattered couch, revealing the device. It was a tall cannon shaped device with blue wing like details on it, both sides that held up the cannon were two dark blue diamond like gems. On it in a gold was written, Jon Jafari. When fired, the cannon creates a design once it shoots, leaving a blue light design. “This is it right? Ross didn’t wreck it did he?”

The orange gem turned his attention away from the box, glancing at the cannon and nodding. “It looks fine… Look Kev, thanks for the help, you can go if you want.”

Kevin shook his head, sitting down on the couch and crossing his legs. “No, I like being here with you. We get to talk as much as we used to Barry.” He replied, fiddling with his thumbs.

Before Barry could fathom a response, the door to the aqua gem’s room opened up. “Hey, what are you guys doing in here?” Ross asked, instantly noticing that someone touched the box. He won't bring it up but he KNEW that somebody touched it. It was always behind the fake junk, always.

Commander Tugtupite was someone who he looked up to as a young gem. Of course he’s never seen her in person but he knew who she is. She is currently a commander on Homeworld, taking a part in most training for Kindergarten gems such as Ross himself. He’d found the chest among a battlefield one day, deciding to keep it for himself. Whenever Barry finds things from Homeworld that tie to her, he likes to keep every bit in this chest.

"Ross, can we talk later?" Barry asked, turning towards the aqua gem. His voice detected urgency over the matter. "You don't mind do you?" He asked.

Well, “mind” isn't a way to word it. If it was about the chest then yes he minded. Ross nodded back at Barry, “Yeah we can talk, I was just down here to help you grab the cannon. Arin mentioned that you were lookin’ for it.” He replied.

“Actually Ross, I’ve got it handled. Kevin and I just found it. I was thinking that the two of you could go outside and hang or something. I have business to tend to, Suzy needed me.” Barry replied, slipping the shield back into his gem.

Ross nodded slowly, looking over at the gem sitting on one of the worn out pieces of furniture. “Where are Arin and Dan?” He questioned him, raising a brow.

“Oh, they went to work on songs. Arin was talking about writing something with him, you know Arin and how he was interested in that human wrapping.” He replied, soft chuckle escaping his lips.

“Yeah,” Ross turned to the door, opening the door with his gem. Kevin trailed behind him, taking the message that Barry didn’t need him around at the moment. The orange gem followed them out, making sure to take note of the box.

The two walked outside, leaving Ross at a loss for what to do with this gem. Then he got an idea or two… “Heeey Kev, I was thinking, since Barry never wants to show you this stuff. Do you wanna see where I was made?” He spoke up, waving his hands in some sort of wave motion.

Kevin nodded quickly, “Sure!” He replied, looking up at the taller gem. He wasn’t too sure where Ross wanted to go but what could be wrong with it?

Ross walked with Kevin, slipping inside towards the warp. He watched the gems in the other room setting up for their concert of sorts, quickly getting Kevin onto the warp. Within a flash the two were in a barren dead area. “Where… Where are we?” Kevin asked, looking up towards Ross.

The aqua gem was quiet for a few moments, glancing at the other. “We’re at a kindergarten.” Ross replied, voice dying down into a quiet manner. For once, he didn’t have a whole lot to say.

There was silence for a few moments before he turned to the other, “Want to see my old hole?” He asked, not waiting for an answer before he ran off to a small dirt hole in the wall. “Walked right on out of it, hey, bet I still fit!” He called, crawling into it slowly.

Kevin watched him, eyes wide with curiosity. Ross came from here? Wait… Where did Kevin come from himself? “You… You were made there?” He asked quietly, catching the glance of Ross.

“Of course I was made here-”

The sound of another warp caught their attention. “Ross! Kevin!” Barry shouted, instantly darting towards Kevin and pulling him close. “ROSS! How could you bring Kevin to… To… A kindergarten?” He asked, voice dying down.

Ross looked up, climbing out of the hole, anger and sadness bubbling up. “I-I…” He swallowed, tears welling up in both his light eyes. “I NEVER ASKED TO MADE!”

Barry tensed, looking away and glancing towards Kevin. “I-I’m-”

“No! Barry st-op!” Ross sniffled, tears trailing down his cheeks. “Everyone treats m-me like I’m not like you and I know that I’m not like you! Kevin and I just aren’t-”

“Ross!” Barry spoke up, holding Kevin close. “I would never think that anyone isn’t like me! None of you are below me, I treat you guys like family.” He spoke up, one hand summoning his shield. “Please understand, I don’t care if you are a kindergarten gem, there are no labels here. You’re no better than me.”

Ross wiped at his eyes, soft smile coming up. “You’re such a sap Barry.” He whispered, calming down slowly.

“Hey, you ready to start this?” Dan asked his friend, small smile spread on his lips. They’d been working for quite a while and he was going to admit he was excited. The blue gem gripped onto his mic, clearing his throat to start. “What can I do, for you?” He started out, swaying his hips gently to the music.

“What can I do that no one else can do?” He sung softly, awaiting the other to speak up. The blue gem hadn’t noticed his ninja friend watching with pure jealousy from afar. “What can I do for you?”

Dan slowly stepped down a few steps, glancing at the other. “Pink gem, you are so much fun.” He started. “I hadn’t planned on being found by you.” He glanced at Suzy in the distance working on drums. “I like your band, I like your humor, I like the way you make me laugh. I like laughing along,”

Arin started up with the other, making sure he moved in the right ways. “What can I do for you? What can I do, for you?” They sung together, letting the song break into chorus.

Brian clenched his fists together tight, walking across the stage to Dan and bent over to almost whisper to him. Arin wasn’t sure what he was watching as the blue gem grinned. Dan nodded, walking past a puzzled pink gem. He swayed his hips, bending back into Brian’s arms. Brian bent the blue gem back in his arms, making sure to meet his piercing blue eyes with Arin’s.

“Eh?” Arin made a small noise, raising a brow.

The two gems fused slowly together, creating a taller fusion with a large mess of light curled hair. Around their forehead was a bright red bandanna, the fusion standing with four arms and an intricate ninja like costume, their teeth sharpened down to a fine point on each of them. The fusion spun around, sneaking one glance up at Arin. He felt his whole body tense as he met with those ice blue eyes.

Chapter Text

The small shuffle of feet caught Kevin’s attention, groaning and sitting up in the scratchy blankets and bedsheets. His eyes wandered to the open fridge’s light hitting him. One of the many cons that he kept his room near the kitchen. Standing over the fridge was Ross, hunched over and pulling foods out with no regard of them. Under his breath he mumbled inaudible words, eyes scanning for what he wanted.

A small noise of surprise came from the young gem. “Ross?” Kevin asked, raising a brow and swinging his feet to one side of the bed to get up.

Ross looked up towards the other, waving to him with his free hand. The other hand clutched a worn carton of milk. Of course he was here to suck down all the milk. “I was jus’ getting some milk.” He replied, pointing to the creamy liquid.

“At two in the morning?” The smaller gem questioned, rubbing one of his dark brown eyes. “Don’t you ever sleep?” He grumbled, climbing out of the bed.

The aqua gem nodded, taking a swig of the milk. “I was asleep but I got bored. Gems don’t have to sleep really but maybe you’re defective.” His tone was overall dismissive but caused quick panic in Kevin as he watched Ross turn to return to his room in the temple.

“Wait! Don’t talk like that!” Kevin spoke up, trying to project more confidence in his voice. “I’m not defective-”

“Kev, it was a joke.” Ross replied, chugging down the rest of the milk. He let out a loud burp, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. “Don’t worry about that because tomorrow we’re doing something awesome.” He turned to leave for his room, smirk spreading across his lips. “Maybe it was joke.”

Kevin furrowed a brow in confusion, watching the other gem wearily. That could mean a number of things are about to happen and very few of these possibilities were good. A long sigh escaped his lips as he walked downstairs. No point in going back to sleep now, he felt far too restless now.

He stepped outside, feeling the gentle breeze. It was nice for the season to just be transitioning from autumn into winter. Although it never seemed to snow around here... Kevin almost wished a few flakes would snow down one winter. He stepped out further towards the shore, looking around. Waters shifted and sloshed onto the shoreline as he watched.

A yawn came up, full of nothing but worried thoughts. Why has Barry been so distant lately? What was Ross saying when they went to the kindergarten? What were they keeping from Kevin?

He tensed, listening to the door crack open to the home. Kevin quickly moved out of sight and hid behind a rock. Walking out of the house were two gems, stumbling to catch their balance on each other. “Arin, you don’t think, uh, anyone will be up?” The blue gem asked, scratching his arm nervously. “I just, I don’t know what everyone would think ‘bout this.”

Arin nodded, looking around quickly. “Yeah, Ross went back to his room. Everyone is busy and no one is out here, Daniel. Only one who'd stalk us would be someone like Brian.” He teased softly, bumping his arm to settle the silence.

The blue gem grinned, grabbing Arin’s hand and slipping behind a large boulder. “Just uh… One more time, okay?” Dan asked, slipping his arms around Arin’s neck.

“Of course Dan, just one more time. I just… I like being Darin with you.” His voice hinted at nervousness, arms moving their way around Dan’s waist. “You just, never know what everyone would think.” He whispered, listening to Dan hum as they swayed together.

Kevin turned to leave until the next line stole his interest. “Brian would have a fit most likely and Ross would be a cocky bastard to us over it. But Kevin… I’d just worry how he’d interpret it.” Dan replied. At this point Kevin was more than spying on them. He watched the two gems sway, admitting a small light. This was a true example of fusion. A balanced relationship. Calm and relaxed yet contained the confidence to fight for their cause. At first, Kevin had been disappointed to have not seen Darin.

Almost gently even, the two gems became one. The tall fusion stood with a large smile, wrapping their arms around themself. There he stood in all his glory, watching the tide smack against the beach. "I missed you." Darin whispered, looking down at the gem on his hand and the other resting on his stomach.

"Wow, that's Darin?" Kevin asked in pure awe. He couldn't put his thrill into words, one of the most balanced fusions was here on the beach. Kevin has seen fusion in all it's glory before but none were as well put as Darin. Doozy had been a bit all over and unused to fusion and Starbomb was breath taking but untamed but... Darin was relaxed, like a real gem even.

Darin swung around, catching the sound of another. His face flashed pure panic, throwing off the balance. "Wait, was that-" The fusion stopped, unfusing and throwing the two gems onto the shoreline.

The blue gem turned to the other, face warm. "Did you hear that? Someone's out here with us." Dan mumbled, a small wheeze of panic in his voice.

"Hey, hey, it's okay Dan. We didn't do anything wrong." Arin attempted to assure him, running a few fingers through his brunette locks. "Don't worry, we're okay. I promise." He used both hands to cupping Dan's cheeks. "Let's just sit out here... Just regather ourselves." He whispered, sitting back and looking up at the stars.

He felt his lips curl up into a sweet smile, sneaking a peak at Arin. "I've always loved thinking about space... Someday I'd love for us all to visit it there again, on good terms." Dan replied, watching them twinkle. "With you of course."

A long sigh came from the young gem,  As Kevin went back inside, climbing into the sheets, he let out a long sigh. He just knew the basic's of Homeworld; They weren't good guys. Homeworld hurt gems, there was no excuse for it. He never knew what it was like in space, just like Ross. It was kind of funny... Picturing a dull life on a planet that he doesn't know anything about. "I'd like to go to space too." The raven haired male whispered.

The next morning drug on, leaving Kevin to awake to the gems gathered on the couch. "Guys, you do not realize this, the hub is still a problem... Since some gems couldn't keep track of what they fused to do." Ross spoke up, earning himself two angered looks.

"I wouldn't be placing blame so quickly rubber." Brian snapped back, supporting one of the angered looks. "Not like you can do much better than we did." The ninja gem edged the other on.

"Oh yeah Brian, wanna put it to a test? I could make any fusion that would take down that hub!" Ross smirked, crossing his arms tight over his chest.

Brian paused, scanning the room for a challenge. Arin would make the two fight too much, Dan shouldn't be pushed into a fusion, Barry doesn't seem like he's fused in centuries, Suzy... Suzy would make a nice candidate for a fusion with Ross. She's smart, enjoys fusion, and could create something interesting. "Fuse with Suzy." A smirk graced his lips, resting one hand under his chin.

He snorted a laugh, standing up to meet the green gem just leaving her room. She jumped, taking a step backwards into her room once she met eyes with Ross. "Jesus Ross, what are you doing just waiting for me?" Suzy hissed, one hand resting on her hip.

"No, but you should fuse with me!" Ross proclaimed, pointing at her with his index finger. He chuckled and shrugged his shoulders back to explain. "Well, I mean, we should fuse. They need someone to take down the hub because Starbomb couldn't, I was hoping you and I could fuse." The light blue gem explained himself, crossing his arms square over his chest.

She paused and thought over an answer before nodding. "Alright, if it's for a good cause... We can fuse." She agreed, making her way towards the warp pad. "Let's get going then. We shouldn't waist time." The green gem awaited the others before they warped back to the crystal structure. A few large crystal pillars lay on the ground from Starbomb, large pieces broken still.

"Shall we?" Suzy asked, holding one hand out for him. Her lips curled into a gentle smile, awaiting him to take her hand.

Ross nodded and took her hand, swaying with her. The two gems took a bit before forming into one gem. The fusion ran a hand through a mess of brown hair, blonde streak showing up. They supported four large arms, a blue sleeveless dress, and large brown boots. "Hey there! I heard you have a hub in need on destroyin'." They smirked, flexing their arms.

Barry help up a hand to talk, "Hello there-"

"Soss, call me Soss. I hope I'm not too 'Sossy' for you Bar!" The fusion exclaimed, swaying their hips in front of the orange gem. "Let's get this done, Soss style." They pulled out the shovel and flail before throwing them into the air to create their weapon. The two weapons created a large wrecking ball, leaving the others in awe.

Barry's face warmed, turning away to ignore them. "I, yeah... Just get this done Soss." He mumbled, watching the fusion throw the ball attached to the chain towards the building. It tumbled in a majestic sweep, causing Barry to pull out his shield on instinct. "Be careful you two." The diamond gem whispered.

Once done, Soss turned to the other gems, taking a bow. "Thanks," The fusion pressed a hand to their mouth, blowing a kiss towards the other gems before unfusing back into two gems. "We were... Awesome!" Ross exclaimed, smiling widely.

"You know it!" Suzy replied, getting up and running a few fingers through her hair. "We should fuse again some other time."