Spinel listened to Lucci talk. "So Spinel … after ten hours of trying to talk about this … what have we learned?" Her bestest best friend had finally woken her up from her bubble. Which was understandable, but still, kind of rude, especially since she did nothing wrong. All she was doing was getting rid of one less bad friend in the world.
"Don't try to kill Luz while everyone is awake." Spinel nodded.
"Spinel…"
"Come on, the Palisman all agree with me, how is this a bad thing?" She asked. "Sugar, you know what I'm talking about."
"Hhss." See, the snake got it.
"Guy's, like it or not, Luz is basically family now, and we don't kill family."
"Bus Luz is evil." She said. "And you said we kill evil people and jerks. Why should familial bonds stop us from killing somebody that deserves it? To let them live would only continue an endless cycle of misery."
"Luz is not evil." Amity groaned.
"Of course she is. She abandoned Glandara just like Pink abandoned me." Spinel justified. "And Lucci said she's the worst person ever after Belos."
"I didn't abandon her, I'm going back." The evil girl tried to justify.
"Ooh sure, that's what they all say." Spinel rolled her eyes. "You say you won't abandon them; promise them with safe eyes that you'll be right back, and then you leave them behind for six thousand years and then die giving birth to your kid!" Just another liar in the world. "Anyone who ever leaves someone else behind is a horrible person that doesn't deserve to not be shattered. The only reason I didn't kill Vee is because I know we're all driving right back home."
"…Masha and Connie chose to stay behind." The basilisk girl stated. "And I've been calling them every other day, along with Garnet, Amethyst, and Lapis."
"Okay, let me get this straight." Sasha rubbed her face. "If anyone ever leaves anyone behind ever, they're equally as bad as Pink in your eyes, and automatically deserve death, the final punishment from no return?"
"See, she gets it." Why couldn't everyone see it? "And you all got stuck and pushed onto earth and are trying your best to get back to the Boiling Isles. It's not like you ran away just because things got scary and left your friends and family behind, right?"
"….Yeah, that was totally the case." Why didn't she fully trust the sweating Gus as she said that? "And we're trying to find our way home, and Luz is helping us do that."
"Okay … so you're saying wait until she wears out her usefulness and then kill her." She nodded. "Like with Pearl and Jasper?"
"You all are a terrible influence." Sasha said for some reason."Throw on a Christmas special for her or something. Better she focuses on anything else other than killing and murder."
"Oh yeah, you mentioned Christ Mass earlier. What's that?" Willow asked.
"It's one of our earth holidays, the origin of which has various different interpretations, so it's called something different depending on where you live in the world." The evil girl explained.
"Wait, I think I heard about this one." Gus spoke up. "It's where humans celebrate nailing a demigod to a cross and brutally torturing him to death."
"… Well yes, that is the Christianity version." Vee nodded after a second.
"Isn't that Belos's religion?" Hunter asked.
"The same religion of that nut job slimeball is the same one that involves humans killing a god …" Lucci looked out the window. "I am … conflicted."
"Okay, one, it's about celebrating his birth rather than his death." Sasha spoke up. "And second, due to centuries of culture clash and progress, it's more about having a fun time with loved ones during the cold weather while exchanging presents."
"Family holiday I take it." Willow asked, a bit sad.
Luz looked down, before smirking. "Yes, and a large and important part of the holiday involves decorating and gathering around a pine tree, trees on earth that are practically immortal." Now Willow began cheering up.
"And I guess we get to play games too, so that'll be fun." She wouldn't lose in a contest of cheering others up to the evil girl.
"Oh yeah, snowball fights are a staple of the holiday. Can't have a Christmas without one." Luz piped up. "We gather around the fireplace and wear warm but tacky looking sweaters, and in the morning, presents are laid all over the place by a magical grandpa named Santa Claus, who in one night brings gifts to all the children of the world."
"Wait, we wake up in the middle of the night and open the door to a guy offering presents for a good deal?" Amity asked.
"No, he just comes in when everyone's asleep and leaves the present, usually after eating cookies and milk people leave out for him." Sasha explained further.
"So an old man breaks into people's houses and gives them presents after eating all their sweets?" Lucci asked.
"If they've been good, yes." Vee said. "Bad, and they get coal."
"… I get to set things on fire for free!?" He asked with sparkly eyes.
"I somehow knew you were gonna misinterpret this into criminal activity, but setting fire during a snowy month was not in my vision." The evil girl muttered.
"Why wouldn't it be? It's freaking freezing outside, setting something on fire sounds like the most practical thing someone could do now." Boscha shivered with goosebumps.
"We could always set fire to the van." Spinel suggested, pulling out some matches. "Just give me a sec here."
"One, it's not Christmas yet, and two, if you're going to set anything on fire, let it be that no good lazy pink bastard." Sasha grumbled, pointing at Spice. The lion looked up at the woman … walking forward and jumping into her lap, taking a nap. "Hey, I can't see damn it!" The bus began swerving. Woopie!
========================================================================
Willow walked across the city the bus had crashed through, passing by a nearby forest that had been heavily chopped down. "I've never seen so few leaves on trees before …" Truly a cruel place.
"You know, it's technically worse in the north pole." Luz said. "Since it's floating ice, it doesn't have trees or bushes."
"I … how would that function?" It didn't seem sustainable.
"Under water they're thousands upon thousands of microscopic plants called plankton that get eaten by fish, which get eaten by predators." Vee explained.
"Did the gems teach you that?"
"Nope. Animal Planet." The basilisk answered. "Gems were too busy fighting corrupted gems to teach me about earth … though other than Amethyst, they don't know that much about it either." She smiled. "We liked to play shapeshifting battles with each other all the time."
"For me and mom, we played Stealess." Lucci bummed with a small smile on his face. "We gather a bunch of house items and sort them all in a pile, then we're given fifteen minutes to steal more items from the other." He sighed. "King won a couple times during his first games because he learned how to weaponize cute eyes."
"My dad and I had illusion offs." Gus smiled. "We'd poof up the goofiest outfits on ourselves and try to make the other laugh first."
"My moms taught me new potions whenever they could and worked me through the specifics. They didn't get too upset when I got them wrong." Boscha said with a bit of nostalgia.
"My dads … just kinda played a board game night with me." Willow chuckled. "Not much, right?"
"Better than no fun." Amity muttered.
"Or even not knowing the concept of fun…or family really at all." Hunter groaned. "Closest I have is Darius teaching me how to sew."
"Weird, he never really gave me dad vibes." Lucci muttered. "... So, how many trees should we chop down?"
"Just one." Luz turned to her. "I figured, you being our plant expert, you could grow your own tree, you know, just to make it extra special."
Willow looked at the barren land. "... Nah … I think I'm gonna make all the trees." She grinned as she raised her hands, making the ground shake. "Stand back … mama is going all the way."
"Would you like musical accompaniment as you build up?" Lucci asked, pulling out a lute.
"No, I don't need a musical number." Willow groaned. "Why would there even be a need for one?"
"Because I see people throwing all those chopped up pine trees into a wood chipper." He casually responded, pointing in the other direction.
"….They're what!!!!?????!" She asked, creating a small forest of thorns and fly traps as she glared in the direction of the sinners.
There indeed, was a man doing exactly that, chopping up trees into a chipper.
"Step right up and get in line for the future of Christmas!" Some man in a business suit and a robotic hand with a brain announcer on top of a stage with a crowd of people. "Get rid of those boring, messy, and run down old pine trees for a top of the line Mctree!"
"A what?" They asked.
"An artificial tree!" A man with glasses shouted. "Made of smooth plastic that doesn't leave a mess anywhere! Plus it has flashing lights, and music!"
"I love me some music!" A jock looking kid shouted. "Plastic trees are totally Bruce!"
"Exactly, random stranger that isn't my stepson I'm using to sell more products!" They pointed out. "Come on and improve Christmas! Toss your dingy old trees into the shredder so you may enjoy our line of mcpencils!"
The crowd began cheering as they ran forward, giving the man money for plastic as they destroyed the forest.
"... Vee, Luz." She sent the two a smile. "I apologize."
"... Why?" The basilisk asked nervously.
"I'm about to make humanity an endangered species."
"Willow, I know this is bad, but you shouldn't kill all of humanity over some rich guy's influence!" Luz tried to hold her back.
"Yo dude, the Mc Trees rule!" They watched as a fat boy and a thin guy talked to one another. "I'm totally ditching my backyard tree and replacing it."
"If I had a backyard, I would totally take it." The thin boy said, before his pack began shaking. "Ah, gotta go shloop real quick." He ran off and looked into some kind of book.
"... Just the rich guy?" She asked.
"Willow, I totally understand your need to kill a lot of people, and I'm all for it." Lucci patted her on the back. "But if my thirty minutes of researching Christmas on the phoon has taught me anything, it's one thing to kill someone, it's another to utterly destroy them, watch them wallow in misery,and force them to watch their downfall … before killing them."
"... You're right." She smiled, looking at the situation. "I'll start with every 'Mctree' in town." She began marching forward.
"And I'm going to get the adoring crowd to turn into an angry mob." He took out the Lute. "Hey everyone!" Lucci jumped into the air, getting their attention.
"This is going to be chaos, isn't it?" Gus sighed.
"Yes it is gus…beautiful…cathartic…chaos." Willow smiled widely.
"Look, real trees are trending downward!" He pointed to the forest. "Sales just continue slipping!" Lucci played a note. "They destroyed all bottom lines, With plastic pines and same-day shipping…Except nature has the better product."
She smirked as she walked forward to the giant man with a robo arm. "So if you wanna win, You gotta study human nature. All those interested, lean in. People are, one, lazy." She created vines to destroy the trees. "We only care about ourselves. Your competition knows this. So their crap flies off the shelves!" She threw his trucks full of fake trees into the air.
"Hey, Mcfist product is one million percent guaranteed to be crap free!" The man with the robotic limb exclaimed. "Even the Mctoliets!"
"But we're also, two, desperate!" He grabbed the man's stepson, slamming them into a wall. "To feel good, smart, right! And that's what you have to harness, If you wanna win this fight!" She continued walking forward. "See, what you're really selling …"
"Robo apes, defend!" He shouted, as mechanical monkeys ran forward.
"....Is the way things oughta be, So your pitch becomes compelling!" Willow tore apart the first one to reach her with her bare hands. "Selling more than just a tree, It's a symbol of your values!" She threw a tree into another. "It's your ethics and your cause! You can either be fake like the trees they make!" And slipped spiky vines into a third. "Or take a stand for Santa Claus!"
"He has a point. Would buying fake trees mean we're having a fake Christmas?" Some girl with purple hair asked as the crowd began to murmur.
"I thought it was the spirit that mattered, so everything else was optional." Some guy in a band costume shrugged. "Then again it is pretty haunting … Christmas carol zing!" One thing she could always count on Lucci for was stirring up a crowd.
"We're bringin' back Christmas … we're bringin' back cheer." He sang quietly as he waltzed through the crowds switching and swapping various winter wear on everyone's heads. We're bringin' back cozy nights, those twinkly lights, the glow of yesteryear!" She sliced off the heads of several apes, leaving behind an oily trail of blood in her wake.
"Now, it's some slight manipulation, But it's what we gotta do." The boy admitted. "See, we need some confrontation, Or your message won't get through." He said as she finally made her way to the bastard who set this whole thing up. "We're bringin' back decency…..!"
"So you made the Mctrees?" She glared.
"Why, yes, yes I.."
"And you destroyed these forests?" She gestured to the land.
"Yes! Very easily in fact-"
"DIE!"
"We're bringin' back Christmas…!" She kicked him in the stomach, grabbing onto his arm as she pulled, her heels digging into his guts. "And that means the piney scent of a real authentic tree!" And the crowd was too wrapped up in Lucci's for anyone to pay attention to his screams of agony.
"Any last words?" Willow growled as she ripped the metal out.
"I did nothing wrong!" That…was the wrong answer
She was about to land the finishing blow with the man's own arm … "SMOKE BOMB!" A puff of smelly smoke popped into the hair, along with some guy in a black and red suit. "Sorry Ms, I like sticking it to Mc Fist as much as the next guy."
"Ninja …" The bastard growled.
"But I'm gettin the feeling you're gonna do something a little too extreme for a PG audience." The black pajama guy put his hands up. "So how about you put down the arm and we can figure out how to calmly deal with McFist."
"This is me dealing with it calmly." She answered bluntly. "The man cut down trees for pencils, and he has the audacity to claim PLASTIC trees are better, so he doesn't deserve a spine, or a beating heart."
"...I don't suppose a light warning and some nachos would help you ease up on the psychotic rage for a minute, would it?"
"No, no it would not."
They stared at each other for a moment. "... Ninja scarf grab!"
"Oh, it would be sure, simple, To boost your market share!" Lucci sang as the 'Ninja' grabbed her arm, swinging her into a wall. "We'd rebrand you as nostalgic, Tell your customers you care!" Which she responded with by tying him down with vines.
"Ninja chain sickle!" He began slicing away at her plants with a really cool and complicated looking weapon.
"But the world is what?!"
"What?!" The crowd was now sucked into the song, completely missing out on the fact a ninja was throwing smokebombs to obscure her vision.
"Tribal!" He exclaimed.
"Oh!"
"So if you want your sales to soar, It's not enough for folks to love you!" The ninja came at her, swinging the blunt end of those weapons whenever he hit her and the sharp ends whenever he hit plants. "They gotta hate your rivals more! As an expert, my advice is … Feed that hate, 'cause hate is strong!" She responded by creating a venus fly trap the size of three people to try and devour him. "Folks will gladly pay your prices, To prove those Christmas killers wrong!"
"I'm very conflicted aboutLucci singing a song that's actively promoting hate." Vee winced. "I mean… even if it's to jerks… that's kind of…"
"Morally questionable?" Luz smirked. "That's just the grayness Eda raised him in. At least this point he's not actively involved in the fight to kill a man."
"Ninja hot balls!" He set her plants ablaze. "Ninja cold balls!" And then froze over her legs.
"We're bringin' back Christmas!" The crowd sang.
"And all the joy that we lost!" Lucci went on.
"We're bringin' it back!"
"Give me some peace on Earth, a virgin birth, and Grandpa gettin' sauced!" He sang as he tossed some old man what looked like a bottle of booze. "Every Facebook-lovin' boomer wants to fight a culture war!"
"A culture war!
"So tell your core consumer that the hell they're fightin' for!
"It's war!"
"Where and when did he learn so much about online culture?" Gus asked as she tried to grow a tree to block the ninja.
"My doing." Boscha raised her hand. "I wanted to include him in my quest to cancel Kevin online before killing him."
"Just let me do my job, Ninja!" She shouted, as he burst out of the tree. "I'm doing the world a favor here!"
"To do what is right, one must know what is right." He said, aiming a sword at her.
"... What does that even mean!?"
"A fight for morality!"
"A fight for morality!"
"It means: are you acting on what's actually good for everyone or on how you feel about it?" The ninja said sternly. "Is this for everyone's benefit, or for your own?"
"People are nothing but self destructive morons from what i've seen!" She shouted, pulling out a tree and using it as a bat against the man. "Everyone here was just fine wasting perfectly good trees and throwing them into the shredder just a minute ago!" She screamed. "It's one thing to chop one down for celebration, at least you can reuse and replant them, it's another to just THROW IT ALL AWAY LIKE NOTHING!"
"Okay, yes, that's a little messed up, and I get where you're coming from." He said. "My smoke bombs were made from an eight hundred year old tree, and Mcfist cut it down."
"HE WHAT!?"
"We're bringin' back Christmas!" Lucci's singing kept going. "And it's not comin' back with some manufactured tree!"
"But I was able to grab one of the seeds and regrow it! Yeah, it sucks that the originals are gone, but that doesn't mean people won't do their part and make something new." The ninja continued. "Violence is only good when it's stopping someone from hurting others. What you're doing is going out of your way to physically hurt someone that hasn't physically hurt you back. So stop being a shoob and try to think of a way that doesn'tinvolve hospitalizing people." The man extended a hand. "Regrow the trees with that freaky magic of yours, then find ways to keep them safe."
".... Like helping plants grow features that kill anyone who tries to waste them needlessly without care or concern?" She asked.
"...How about scare them away, does that do it for you?" He asked pleadingly.
"...Fine." She sighed, letting her vines retract.
"Besides, the guy singing seems to be doing a fine job at turning people away from Mctrees anyways." He pointed to the crowd around Lucci.
"I'm talking about a living tree in your living room." Lucci spoke up. "Think of it. I reach up to place the angel on top." And placed a blushing Boscha on top of the tree." I look out my window and I see my neighbor, Doug."
"I don't know him!" Some skinny kid with glasses shouted. "How did he know my name?!"
"Across the street, snapping together his artificial tree!" The crowd that was once for plastic trees now gasped in horror. "Easy peasy, poor, lazy, deplorable Doug, who cares more about convenience than the happiness and respect of his town, of his country, of our sacred holiday!"
"But if we use artificial trees then we won't have to cut down actual-"
"How dare you Doug!?" A balding man accused. "How many dentitions do I need to give you before you learn your lesson on being a buzzkill!"
"Yeah! Boo Doug! Screw him!"
"Lets boycott Mctrees just so we don't have to be like Doug!"
"But I'm trying to actually help the-"
"Shut it Doug!"
"I'm talkin' nativities and sweet baby Jeez!" Lucci continued singing as the crowds were now setting fire to all the Mctrees. "Fat honey hams, Mariah Carey jams! Feliz Navidad, and the birth of our God!"
"Gathered 'round with our families'!"
"We're bringin' back Christmas!"
"We're bringin' back Christmas!
"It'll be a bash with some good old fashioned trees!"
"My money!" The man screamed. "Curse you ninja!"
"… You sure you don't want to-" Willow raised a finger.
"Tempted many times, but then I'd be no better then the guys I beat up. It's a responsibility thing." He shook his head. "So we cool?"
"Eh, why not." She shook his hand. "Willow Park."
"Ninja." The pajama man seemingly smiled under his mask. "Now if you don't mind … Smoke Bomb." And with a puff of bad smelling smoke, the man was gone.
"So…you just made friends with a Ninja….that's cool." Luz whistled as everyone walked up to her. "Somehow that's on the lower scale of weirdness we've come across so far."
"I still don't know what's weirder." Sasha scratched her head. "The fact the song is working, or that it perfectly represents Christmas commercialism."
"Anarchy shall spread!" Lucci screamed as he watched a burning pile of fake trees with glee. "Glorious, glorious chaos!" He smiled. "You know what, let's make this one of those Christmas traditions people go on and on about. Come here and destroy whatever big name jerk we can find."
"Sounds like a plan." Willow smiled.
========================================================================
"So, how are you doing?" Camila asked her daughter via facetime on her laptop while holding little Dana on her lap. It had been a few weeks, and while her daughter had been good with keeping her up to date, this time Camila INSISTED that she get one video call a week.
"Doing good. We met a ninja and helped him fight monsters that were actually people turned evil by evil 'stank'." She responded.
"An entire town gets turned into monsters if they're sad or angry, how is that sustainable!?" She could hear Lucci shout.
"No magical artifacts there though, so we're still looking around." Camila couldn't believe the time actually came where that was a reasonable sentence instead of Luz's overactive imagination. "But enough about that, how's the little bundle of joy and dreams doing?"
"She's doing just fine." She assured, showing off little Dana.
"Awaa …" Her other daughter cooed.
"Oh, you precious little bean, I just wanna squeeze your little cheeks for the rest of my life." Luz smiled brightly as she touched the screen. "Can I get a virtual high five from the best little sis in the world?" Dana began clapping in place with a giggle. "Close enough. Are you certain you're not overwhelmed mom? I can get Spice to warp me back if you're overwhelmed."
"I'm fine. Connie is a great help." She waved off.
"The milk's warmed up Ms Noceda!" The girl shouted from the other room.
"You can keep going if you need to." Camila said, turning back to her daughter. "Honestly, time off from the clinic has really been good for me. It allowed me to finally get away from… everything piling over in my life."
"Heh, yeah … has… you know who…. stopped by?" Luz winced.
"No. Greg's been more busy with the fallout of what you kids did after the concert." Camila slightly chuckled. "Mainly investigators and reporters wanting him to confirm his humanity. Suffice to say, I don't think his term is going to last very long."
"Yeowch … can't imagine they're gonna accept anyone but Dewey after that." Her daughter chuckled.
"Sasha's friend Anne kept insisting on Nana Pizza, so something might change." Camila gave a light shrug. "I just hope you kids are staying safe."
"It's a very…loose definition of safe, but we are." Luz admitted honestly. "But we've encountered so many places on earth almost as magical as the Boiling Isles. I think everyone here can agree when I say Hawaii was the best part."
"Preach it sister!" Willow shouted.
"Only time I liked the fuzzy menace in our backseat." The bus driver said sarcastically. "Every other time makes me want to skin it."
Luz's eyes widened. "Okay I think Sasha ticked off the lion we're gonna warp gotta go stop iiiiiittt-" The windows appeared almost rainbow, before the screen shifted into 'Signal Lost'.
"Gaaaah." Dana giggled from her lap.
"You're right, I should just assume everything is alright and hope for the best." It was the only way she was going to sleep at all tonight with THAT terrifying thought in her head. "At least she's having fun with her friends." After all that happened, Luz deserved that at the very least.
She clicked off the zoom page, about to turn off the laptop Luz left behind … until she saw something at the edge of the screen. "Video Diary." … No, she shouldn't, Luz deserved her privacy …
"Bawaaa?" Dana's hands moved on top of the mouse pad.
"No, Dana, don't touch…" The cursor had move on top of the file, opening it. "...Well … it's already open … if anyone ever asks, this was a complete accident, got it Mija?"
"Gah." … Please don't grow up to be like Lucci.
She clicked on the icon, showing off a screen asking for … "A password?" Well that was probably for the best, a way to tell her to stop. It's not like it would be something as simple as … "CottoncandygoddessAmity."
Open
… She was so thankful that she asked Dr Waybright to keep her daughter protected. "I didn't even know Luz had a video diary. When did she start this?" Camila scrolled through it, going to the very first one. "Am I really about to do this?"
"Babu." Her child looked up at her with curious eyes.
"I've come this far … oh please don't let me regret this." Taking in a deep breath … she clicked on it.
Instantly, an image of her daughter, around six years of age popped up as the video played.
"Hello Gravesfield!" Her daughter shouted into the computer. "My name is Luz Noceda. A pleasure to make your acquaintance as the best princess this side of the state!"
"… She did it this young?" She asked.
"We came here for better opportunity and stuff." She looked around, before she leaned in close and began whispering. "Although, I'm pretty sure it's actually for Dad's sake. He's been sick for a while, and I overheard mom saying something about better equipment." The girl sighed. "I know it's getting worse, but I'm still optimistic everything will turn out alright."
"She…she knew that young…" Camila felt her tears began to well up. This was how Luz was coping with Manny's death…while she was concerned for his heath
The next clip played. "I made a new bestest friend!" Little Luz shouted, showing off a picture. "Her name is Centipeetle. She's a centipede and a beetle. Perfect name for a giant acid spitting bug that loves chaaps." She chuckled. "She doesn't really trust people though, she always runs away unless I'm alone." Oh right … one of her imaginary friends. What was the other one, Glandala? "I got a jar of her acid to!" She showed off a smoking bottle with a hole at the bottom. "… I had a jar of her acid." ….After everything that happened…it was only now that she realized her imaginary friend probably wasn't quite so imaginary.
Another clip showed off a very dark room. "So … dad died." ….. "I saw mom cry a lot, so I did my best to hold it in and keep her happy. Like dad said, you always help someone if you have the choice … right?"
"Oh Luz…." Even from so young, she was trying to stop herself from being happy for her sake….she shouldn't have had to deal with that. That wasn't fair to her at all.
"I got a book from him … he said I'd like it. I'm gonna read it tomorrow." She held up…
"Good Witch Azura?" Manny gave that book to her?
Now it was showing her room adorned in drawings. "Azura had to be my past life! She's so awesome and amazing! Fantasies and wizards and magical destinies galore!!" It was more than just her fantasy and imagination…it was Luz's last memory of her father….just like how Cosmic Frontier was her memory of Manny.
Another one played, this time her room being filled with merchandise. "I went to my first convention, and I found SO many cool things and saw so many other nerds like me! I even got this sword!" Luz held up what Camila at the time thought was a prop. "I'm gonna cut my hair with it!" Another clip played, this time with Luz and her hair in short shambles. "BAD IDEA! REALLY REALLY BAD IDEA!"
"Bawaaaa…" Dana laughed at her older daughter's rushed judgement.
"That is when we had to cut Luz's hair much shorter…..it was a very entertaining trip to the barber shop." Camila chuckled. Even if Luz was overactive, she always found it more endearing than annoying, in spite of what most adults had to say about it.
"So I kinda started a fire accidently in the school closet and dragged Connie into the mess. Her mom was shouting at her for hours … not a good impression to make." She winced. "But I'm sure one of my activities will get us to be friends. You know, one that doesn't cause people to run away … or pass out … or require medical attention …" Luz sighed. "I really want us to be friends. We both don't hang out with anyone else at school and we both love reading books….why am I so bad at making us click?" Luz pounded her head on her desk. "Why can't I do anything right?"
The bottle of milk was placed next to her. "I'm just … gonna go." Connie spoke quietly, walking back into the kitchen.
So much of Luz's self doubt… so much of it was beginning to make sense. Yes, some self control was needed… but for everyone to constantly tell her over and over again she screwed up … it was pushing her into a dark place that she could wind up never getting out of.
"Gwaaa."
Another clip was shown, this time with Luz's appearance since she came back, her expression looking much more melancholy. "...So I haven't done this in a while…at least on my own computer….I got my friends trapped on earth…." Her oldest daughter whipped away tears. "..They sacrificed so much for me….I got home and it cost them everything…"
"Luz …" It wasn't her fault. It shouldn't have to be.
The last clip was of Luz, eerily silent as she looked over the other sleeping children. "… I cause problems." She said. "Centi's dead cause she protected me, Belos has powers because I gave them to him, the Collector is free because I wasn't good enough, I almost killed everyone out of a stupid wish while holding onto what's essentially a magic lamp. No matter what I do…I don't…I can't do anything right…I can't be right…." Luz cried even more. "So when we finally get the portal running… I'll stay here. Mom needs me….more than I need happiness. The last time I left mom got knocked up by Greg.." That was Camila's fault and her fault alone. "And Dana will need me…so she can grow up with an example of what not to turn into….Mom deserves at least one kid that isn't messed up."
She shut off the computer, taking a deep breath. Luz was spiraling into a very, very dark path. "Bawaaaa?" Dana looked up her with a look of concern.
"I'm worried too." Camila hugged her baby. It wasn't right for Luz to just…shut herself off from everything when she's been struggling so much for so many years. There was only one solution..even if it meant letting go of her daughter….she would do her damndest to make her happy.
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Garnet would be open to admit that she had been making quite a few mistakes lately. Shutting herself off from Vee for about a month being one of them. Failure to keep Pearl in line being another. Failure to handle the majority of homeworlds threats being the biggest on her mind. She couldn't blame the kids when they said they weren't that helpful when it was true. "I'm glad you're having fun sweetie." She was determined to fix that however. At the very least, she would make sure to always be there for Vee emotionally. "Love the new due btw." She sent her a thumbs up.
"Thank you, a shapeshifting ameba in Hawaii did it for me." … They really needed to double check their warp locations if they were THIS out of the loop with the rest of the world. "This trip's been a blast so far. I met a sweet and kind pink dog named Courage and caught up with one of my old friends, Molly McGee."
"The girl who always smiled and tried to 'enhappify the world'?"
"That's the one. We went shopping after getting Lucci back into his body … really questioning how much consent is in his current relationship with how controlling Boscha is."
"We are perfectly happy together!" The three eyed girl screamed from the other line. "I didn't do anything to my crystal that I wouldn't want him to do to me!"
"The ropes were a bit much, but I was fine with all of it." The boy himself nodded.
That was a mild concern. "Vee, if you need to act on your youthful hormones, just remember to talk me through it before you do anything with Connie and/or Masha." I feel like we should be having a stricter conversation about this. Let the girl have her fun, if it was us, we'd be going crazy for a thousand years straight…in fact, we DID do that.
"Yes mom." She said, sarcastically, before an awkward silence filled the air, the girl blushing madly. "I mean … oh no, Gus is getting into an argument with the local magician" Her daughter lied. "Love you Garnet."
"Love you too Vee." She formed her hands in the shape of a heart. Vee responded with a heart of her own, before hanging up. Why didn't we go with them? We wouldn't even be getting in the way. We'd just follow the bus from a distance and intervene when we can. They have people to watch over them, just as we need to watch over Belos. We need to make sure he stays dead and contained. So far it had been quiet … and at risk of a jinx, too quiet. Belos literally hasn't moved in his bubble in the slightest, despite all signs pointing to him still being somewhat sapient.
The town itself had been in a bit of an uproar, but that mostly stemmed from the kid's exposing Greg as Belos's hosts. Currently, the latest conspiracy was that the man was being possessed by alien parasites that wanted to use his position to infect the town. Garnet herself found the theory of 'toxic memories come to life' particularly amusing.
"I told you to stop leaving your trash around, Amethyst!" The annoying voice of Pearl screamed out. With most of the major threats out of the way, that just with making sure Pearl didn't do any more sabotaging and that Lapis didn't drown anyone….tasks that were rather daunting for her to deal with for very different reasons.
"What you going to do about it? Manipulate those Centipettles and destroy the house?" Amethyst countered back with a small growl. "Why do you even care if it's a little messy? You already hate Vee, not like this house means anything to you if Rose isn't around."
"It's not about Rose, it's about having common decency and standards!" Pearl barked back.
"Oh my, decency and standards from the hypocrite. What a surprise." Lapis droned on sarcastically and flippantly.
"Well at least I care about life other than the exception of a single person, you heartless gem!" Pearl accused the blue gem.
"Pfft, care about life, that's a joke." Lapis snarked.
"It's more than you could ever claim! In spite of whatever grievances I've ever had, I actually committed myself to the task of protecting this planet! You constantly look for any excuse to fly away from it, something that your oh so precious Vee actively despises and discourages you from doing!" Pearl made her point.
"Oh don't you dare talking about Vee, you bird nosed walking pile of salt!" Lapis turned her water wings into blades pointed at the pale woman. "You don't even have the right to speak her name!"
"I ignored Vee, I didn't sabotage her existence!"
"Other than the hourglass." Garnet growled as she made her way past the pale gem. "When you wanted to alter the entire course of the entire universe because you don't know how to let things go." This doesn't feel right….there's much more hostility in the air. I didn't notice, this feels like a bunch of stuff that was bubbling to the surface.
"Oh…you're going to tell ME about not letting this go?" Pearl grew an evil grin on her face. "Says the six thousand year old fusion based on a LIE!" THAT BITCH!
"A lie you kept!" Garnet shouted. "From a woman who we can all clearly tell was full of it and just doing what she did for giggles." She leaned in close to the gem.
"Whatever faults Rose had, it all served her ideals, her goal of preserving this horrid planet, ideals you wouldn't even begin to think of having if it hadn't been for her!" Pearl kept going. "She was a liar, and a manipulator, but if she hadn't done that, none of us would even be here today! You'd all just be mindless cogs and brainless dolts working endlessly without question! At least Rose actually GAVE you those questions!"
"Oh sure, and her war led me to being trapped inside of a mirror for six thousand years. Wooptie fucking doo." Lapis clapped her hands sarcastically. "Bet you feel real proud of your victory, you know, with the six survivors of the war if we include the crazy voice in your head. You're all so hopeless."
"Hey, we've kept the planet safe for years, don't pretend like we haven't done anything!" Amethyst accused.
"Oh right, you've done something. Between falling to Jasper, Moldavite, Belos, Lucci, and quite literally anyone who actually tries to fight you other than the worthless police officers, you've actually made a contribution to the world. Congrats." Lapis rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Vee is better off leaving all of you behind."
"And what's that supposed to mean?" Garnet growled, feeling Ruby's anger overwhelming her.
"Wow, and here I thought Sapphire could see through the lines." Pearl stated.
"... I will give you one chance to take that back." Her fists clenched in rage.
"For once cone nose makes a good point." Lapis snickered. "Your future vision has helped jack and shit for every single problem, like the fact you couldn't even use it to know your own kid. You say the future is hard to navigate, but the truth is that you just plain suck as a guardian, as a leader, and as a parent."
Garnet screamed in rage, throwing the blue gem out of a window. "FINE THEN! LET ME SHOW YOU WHAT A REAL GUARDIAN LOOKS LIKE!" She shouted, jumping after them.
"Oh it's on!" Lapis summoned a huge pillar of water, shaping it like a giant fist. "I was just about tired of holding back!"
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Lucci groaned. "Another regular lame town….. man just when I thought this planet was a decent place." It was no fun when they didn't run into something weird and/chaotic.
"Meh, it was bound to be hit and miss. We just ran into a hit streak cause Spice kept bouncing us around." Luz shrugged, ruffling the pink fluffy feline. "Honestly, we're doing way better than I thought we would. That ninja guy was pretty nice… when I could understand him through his lingo."
"I thought it was just cultural diversity." Gus shrugged.
"Trust me, that was not ANY culture I have ever heard of." Vee scratched her head. "I lost track when he said Bruce and Cheese for the fiftieth time."
"Maybe all the fumes made by that Mcfist bastard's factory is making everyone stupider." Willow growled darkly. "I knew we shouldn't have left without setting it on fire."
"If he hadn't stopped Mc Fist after the blatant death threats and constant factories, that Ninja's gotta be the most morally upstanding guy we met." Hunter noted.
"I guess you have to be in a town where 'stanking' is possible." Boscha grumbled. "The second someone gets too upset, a sorcerer takes over your body … how only I got taken over is a mystery." Everyone stared at his girlfriend for some inexplicable reason. "What are you idiots looking at?"
"Just waiting for the irony to hit." Amity admitted with a nod. "Distractions aside, we've been doing really well schedule wise. We only have two items left on the list."
"Yep, a spatial grid and a probability matrix … ie, a highly complicated device that warps the fabric of location, and the ability to literally control fate." Luz added. "...Is it weird that I still think the weirdest thing we've come across so far is the sentient plank of wood?"
"That was no plank of wood… it was a demon… Far… far beyond even the depths of hell could even reach." Sasha grimaced. "May god have mercy on the souls in that town, for the devil clearly has none."
"He didn't seem that bad." Vee shrugged. "He had a charming personality, like Onion does."
"Vee, your kindness is greatly appreciated, but severely misplaced in several instances." Lucci shuddered. "At the very least we'll have an interesting story to tell Dana as she's growing up. Hopefully inspire her to have her own anarchist awakening."
"Please be less of a pyromaniac, Dana." Luz said to the sky.
Seeing there wasn't much else to do but wait, Lucci decided to look up 'superheroes' on the internet to see if there were any comics he could read online … and blinked. "Hu … I guess we missed something during that warp pad trip in Paris."
"What do you mean?" Amity asked.
"I'm saying that I found a superhero forum about a bunch of heroes and villains in Paris." He responded, instantly getting their attention.
"Super heroes… as in actual tight wearing mask on face secret identity superheroes?" Vee asked in confusion.
"Spandex and animal themes in all." He showed off the images.
"....Those are some of the tackiest outfits I've ever seen." Boscha stated outright. "It… just … the red and black dots….there's no special design to it, it's just … like it's painted on her."
"The hair buns look nice … but what's with the yoyo?" Willow asked.
"Darius would definitely not approve of all that black leather." Hunter noted. "And the bell…ugh, that's leaning WAY into whatever cat theme he's going for."
"Are those contacts or does he actually have slit eyes?" Gus questioned the images.
"That fox girl looks pretty cute though." Vee smiled with a hum. "And she has a flute. Ooh, does she fight with music?"
"Let me check it out." He muttered, moving down the page. "Okay, according to this 'Ladyblog', there's a whole team of magical heroes, all of them getting their powers using items called … 'miraculouses'."
"Lame." Boscha rolled her eyes. "So, what can they do? Fly? Shoot fire?"
"The red one, 'Ladybug'..."
"Seriously?!" Gus exclaimed. "If you're going to look that outrageous, then have a name that stands out at least!"
"I know, real original there." He rolled his eyes. "Has the power to create any object that will instantly win the situation at hand, then fix all damage caused by the villain …"
"...SHE HAS AN INSTANT FIX POWER!?" Luz exclaimed. "Where the hell has that deus ex machina power been when WE need it?!"
"So many destroyed buildings we didn't need to run away from." Amity muttered.
"So many casualties that didn't need to be caught in the crossfire." Vee sighed.
"She's obviously the leader." Hunter nodded. "What about the black one?"
"The hero known as … 'Cat Black'."
"....Ow…Ow…I think that lack of originality is actually killing me." Gus clenched his chest.
"Has the power to … destroy whatever … he touches …" Lucci blinked at that one. "Okay, okay, probably small scale. Maximum feat … cookie sized planet …" … THE FUCK!? "You mean the power to one hit ko any enemy in my way, Belos, the coven heads, Moldvaite, heck maybe even the Collector…..THAT EXISTED THIS ENTIRE TIME!?"
"I think we can start to forgive the lack of original names." Luz said with a bit of sweat.
"What kind of broken magic system do they even follow?!" Amity shouted.
He looked it over, sighing in relief. "One use, five minute timer till they change back, need a recharge." So they weren't COMPLETELY broken beyond belief.
"What about everyone else?" Willow asked.
"Lets see…Rena Rouge, Fox hero, creates illusions by blowing into her flute…"
"So a bard and an illusionist…nice." Gus grinned.
"Carapace, Turtle hero, creates indestructible shields…" Might have to test that out against him one of these days. "Queen Bee, Bee Hero, can paralyze anyone with a touch …
"Clover, how deadly is the venom in your stinger?" Willow asked.
"Bzzt." Not that potent against Boiling Isle threats. Would probably kill a human though … should we test it?
"We're not going to kill Luz." Willow chastised.
"Other heroes are too new and sporadic, so I can't get much …" Lucci muttered. "Apparently there's a bunny who can time hop, a horse that can teleport, an 'all knowing snake hero', a dragon girl that can turn into elements, and a monkey that messes with other powers."
"So they all have broken op powers that are hindered by that time limit thing?" Hunter hummed. "I don't know if that makes them more or less impressive."
"A man could destroy the planet by poking it and a girl is a living dues ex machina. Time limit doesn't mean THAT much." Luz complained. "Who the heck are they fighting that hasn't been beaten yet?"
He read it over. "Lets see … apparently there's two villains by the name of … The Butterfly and Peacock."
"..." Everyone gave the same deadpan expression. "No…just…..no." Boscha spoke for them all.
He kept reading. "The Butterfly can turn anyone with negative emotions into a supervillain with any power they wish, and Peacock can give them a creature to compliment their situation." He blinked. "So the moment anyone anywhere in Paris feels just the tiniest bit of sadness or anger, they become super villains?" He asked. "… How do they FUNCTION?!" It was Norrisville all over again!
Luz looked it over. "Powers range from turning people into mind controlled knights, blasting people into pictures, bringing nightmares to life, creating indestructible cages, becoming any animal they pleased, invisibility, and changing people into gold statues."
"So an op villain with op powers can create villains with even MORE op powers." Amity's eyes twitched. "... All in favor of never visiting Paris?"
"Agreed." Everyone announced at once.
")*))*)"
And everyone's attention was turned to the white pyramid floating above Gus. "...I completely forgot that was a thing…. no offense Gus." Willow said.
"None taken. Prism spends most of their time with Emmeline anyways."
"I feel like Prism would have been helpful with the Cicadas." Amity pointed out. "I can only think of…like three other times where they bothered to even participate in anything."
"*{%{%]*{." It gestured to Spice.
"Preach it Prism!" Sasha shouted.
"Grrrr." Spice began to get up as his eyes glowed.
"I think he's going to warp us out of spite again!" Gus shouted. "Brace for impact!" Such was their life.
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Hessonite bowed to the radiant Yellow. "I apologize, my Diamond, but we still have no report from the Peridot, and the Rubies continue to search."
"Their search is taking far too long." An impatient Diamond was not equivalent to a good day… or minelina for that matter. The wrath of these gracious and powerful beings knew no end.
"Should I send down another scout team, or do you think some more … drastic measures are required?" She asked her Diamond.
"I've already devoted far too much attention towards that dying rock to begin with. Any second more that I give it thought that isn't about the cluster is far too much quite frankly." Yellow Diamond groaned with displeasure. "Not to mention Blue would absolutely accuse me of being a hypocrite." She muttered quietly. "Do a quick scan of the planet. If you cannot locate either the rubies or the jaspers, then leave them to perish. For them to go this long without reporting is incompetence of the highest caliber."
"I understand, my Diamond." Hessonite saluted, signing off as the screen dissipated. So much trouble over a single Jasper. If they didn't get shattered after this was all over, it would be a freaking miracle. "Lets get this over with." She set up a scan for gem activity on the planet, idly watching as the radar went off. "Alright … I'm reading one Amethyst, one Pearl, … six Rubies?" She tilted her head. One more than the scouting party was composed of.
Hessonite shook it off and kept looking. "One Lapis, one Sapphire, two … unidentified." She muttered, gazing at the screen in confusion. It was gem energy, but it was too distorted to be specific, almost like it was merged with something … how curious. "Finally, a Prism and a Spinel." She listed off as she closed the screen.
"I should probably report the two signatures and-" Wait … She ran back to the console, opening it up. "Prism …" Hessonite pulled a lever, trying to get a more specific read on the model number. "Prism….." One of homeworlds most prized possessions and trophies, of which she held the highest collection aside from the diamonds themselves. They were the one thing in all the universe that she charised above serving her beloved diamonds, and she always made sure to take special care of them… especially after the war… where she lost a five whole series…
"Number Gamma E Five …" One of the lost … "MAMA'S COMING!" She moved over to the driving console. "Peridot, start liftoff, we're heading to earth!"
"But I thought Yellow Diamond expressed her displeasure of the planet." Her square headed assistant countered.
"She said leave it alone if we didn't find Jasper or the Rubies, and we found six!" She argued back. "Now start the launch or I'll show you a court martial."
"As you wish, captain." The little green nuisance rolled their eyes.
Soon … soon she'd have her little one back to her collection. Oh, she should bring the others out of hibernation, a good old family reunion!