Greg groaned as he rested on the couch. "How can … one child … need so much?" He asked, looking down at the giggling Sour Cream. "I thought you were easier when you weren't rebelling."
"Awaa." The little child greeted with a smile.
"I can't stay mad at you … little guy." He rubbed Sour Cream's head as he rested. The boy was almost about to turn three.
Looking back on his time staying at Validia's house, it became more and more apparent of just how much of a freeloader he had become, everything his parents said he would become if he went off on his own. It was a twist in the gut, but a much needed kick in the pants…almost dying in a Ferris wheel, that also put a lot of his life into perspective as well.
That's why Greg was now dedicating himself to living on his own, with his own job. He may just be a simple car washer, and the pay barely allowed him to eat for a week, but it was the little steps he was taking that mattered.
Using his repressed but regretfully useful math skills from highschool, he managed to put away a small sum with each check. Plus, plenty of people had sandy cars, so boo ya there. Who knows? He might be able to own the car wash one of these days.
"Aww, is 'Uncle Greg' all tired out?" The most amazing thing in his life asked as she sat down next to him. "And here I thought you were the one with more stamina in the relationship."
"Rose, not in front of the kid." He said with a fluster in his voice, covering little sour cream's ears. "Kid's can pick up weird habits at this age if you're not careful."
"Aww come on, weird makes things wonderful." They laid back. "Just look at it from my perspective … This is weird. Watching two living things grow every second as they change … it's better than any magic I've ever seen." Rose gazed at the child. "Creating life …"
"Yeah, it can be something amazing." Greg agreed as he rocked the kid to sleep as he sat down. "Last time you babysitted with me, you were a little hesitant. Bad experience?"
"Something like that." Rose sighed. "I've seen so many, I've traveled across so many worlds and seen so much life bloom, but there was one I swore to protect…but failed to. I never got the chance to see how she ended up."
He looked down at the little tyke, rocking him silently. "You could always visit … I know I haven't seen my folks since I left …" And they haven't called … or messaged … "But just because you make a mistake, it isn't the end of the world."
"It certainly feels like that most of the time." She sighed. "Failing that one child led down a domino effect that's still being felt today by so many. I..I could go back…but I just keep getting reminded of how I've failed."
"Hey, you can help things grow, but you can't control what they grow into." He told her, gently putting a hand on hers. "We're not puppeteers that control how people act … life just blooms the way it was meant to."
"That's why it always amazes me…with organics…with humans…there's no telling what you'll grow into. Each experience is always something unique." She pressed a gentle finger on the sleeping baby. "Greg…have you ever created life before?"
That sounded innocent coming from Rose, but he had been around long enough to hear the innuendo behind it. "Ah…no. I've never..dated anyone seriously.." He never counted all those dates his parents set up for him as a teenager. "... before…you're my…first."
She gave a hum, looking down at the child, before looking at him with sparkling eyes full of determination and certainty. "I want a kid."
Greg would sadly admit to himself that it took an ungodly amount of self preservation to not drop Sour Cream the moment he heard that. It was one thing to be afraid of his parents, but Valdalia was something else entirely. "...Whaaaa?" He squeaked in a low whisper.
"I've thought about it for a while…and…I'm certain about it." Rose firmly stood up. "I want to have a child…more than that.." She turned to him with bright and star filled eyes. "I want to have your child."
Well that was certainly moving fast and furiously. "Rose … are you sure about this?" He asked, glancing down. "You saw how hard it is just taking care of someone else's kid, let alone our own." He'd have to try and double down on his wash.
The gem snorted. "I've been raising three gems for over five thousand years."
"Yeah…I wouldn't count that as necessarily….positive." Greg sheepishly chuckled. "Pearl still threatens me with a spear…"
"Which is a big improvement over killing people with a spear."
"Amethyst riffles through the town's garbage…"
"I taught her how to speak, make friends, and she only eats for pleasure, it's not actually hurting her." Rose smirked. "Plus you're not exactly the picture of cleanliness yourself half the time."
"I bathe….most of the time." He sighed. "And Garnet…well, okay, I don't really see anything wrong about her, she's just really quiet and distant." Also kicks his butt at tennis at any given time.
"Yes, she is probably more mature than I am, but has trouble getting modernism down … still an improvement considering how fast she adapted to earth."
"I don't know Rose…there's more to having a kid than just…having a kid." Greg walked back and forth. "I barely make anything at my job.."
"You're the one that says money isn't everything." Rose countered.
"I don't own a house and I can't keep living with Validia when she's struggling to support her own kid…"
"We have the temple, and we can build a house there." She countered again.
"Construction equipment still costs money…"
"Amethyst collects anything and everything, there's more than enough supplies to work with,." Rose smirked. "And Pearl is a quick study at everything."
"There's still school and education…"
"I've traveled the universe and we've seen most of humanity's history in real time. There's nothing they won't ask that we won't know."
"But…but…but…"
"Trust me Greg." She cut him off before he began. "Any concern you have I can come up with a solution … Just trust me, please?" She asked, holding his hand. "I want us to create the most beautiful life imaginable."
"I…i.." Greg gulpled, unwilling to find himself to argue with this wonderful woman. "I…I'm not saying no, I'd never say no to you." He held her hands affectionately. "Just…give me time to prepare. If we're going to have this kid, I want to be able to support them in any way I can."
"Of course." She smiled, giving him a kiss. "When you're ready, I'll be ready." She was still, to this day, the most amazing thing to him. "... While I'm waiting … how are children made anyway?"
"Ah…You don't know?" Greg asked. "We've had sex dozens of times."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Rose inquired. "That's just how two beings embrace their love and passion for one another."
"... I'll tell you in a week." God, please give him the mental fortitude for that conversation. Why did he now regret not taking the sex ed course in high school. "A kid…a kid…I'm going to be a dad to a kid…" Greg quickly placed Sour Cream in his chair before laying down on the couch, his legs feeling weak. "There's so much I need to do for them….I have to make sure I don't end up like my parents."
"I've seen how that goes for generations." Rose let out a light snicker. "You'd be surprised how stubbornness can get the results you want." She patted him on the back. "I've seen daughters with strict mothers, mother's with laxed daughters. Like you said, children become who they want to be. We're here to, hopefully, guide them a little."
That did make him feel a little better. "One of these days you have got to take me to this Mewni place. A whole nother universe sounds exciting."
"Oh, there's more than just one, Mr. Universe." She winked and kissed him on the list. "There's more than one cosmos to take a trip around."
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Eda Clawthorne, or as her wanted poster called her nowadays, the Owl Lady, wasn't particularly the sentimental type. She learned to live on her own around thirteen, constantly avoided police from both the human and Demon realm, and her most frequent companion was a giant owl worm demon that never knew when to shut up. Friends were in short supply for her these days.
But she could appreciate the company of a couple good drinking buddies. "A toast to the child of the immortal pink rock!" shouted Scrooge Mcduck, drinking a bottle of whiskey. Best part of tonight would probably be him being too drunk to notice her stealing the bag of gold coins from his pocket.
"I can't tell how much vindictive pleasure you're having over the fact I can't drink at the moment." Said pink lady muttered.
"So much I'm paying for the next round."
"Wow, the uptight duck is willing to be generous, we must be on the other side of a rainbow in a field of four leaf clovers." The blonde woman in a tight and foxy jumpsuit, Carol, laughed as she chugged down a mug. "Well either way, congrats girl. Didn't think you were the type to settle down at all."
"What can I say … I met a kindred soul." The gem smiled, looking wistfully into the sky. "Someone who understands what it is to watch life move and to be free enough to enjoy it."
"Pfft, romance, who needs it?" Eda snorted, totally not bitter while sipping some hard apple blood. "You think they understand where you're coming from, but then the night after you hit the lottery, he gets all moody about who shares what of the cut and from there you get into vindictive matches of who can out con who and…!"
"Wait, I'm confused." An oldie by the name of Max waved his hand. "Are we talking about Stanly or Rainer?"
"Both come from the same line of con-men, I hardly remember the difference half the time." She rolled her eyes.
"I feel for you, Owl Lady. Anytime I let my heart melt around Goldie, I get swindled every single time." Scrooge grumbled. "I swear if it weren't for my niece and nephew, I'd give up on my family altogether."
"Yeah, I've felt that." Rose nodded, looking down as she rubbed her stomach. "But now I get to start one all on my own."
"And to think we only had to study seventeen corpses for the information on how to help you make a baby maker." Eda smiled.
"... Can you leave that out of your story?" Rose asked.
"Ah, I see, want to up the number to thirty and scare off any enemies?" Eda laughed. "And we did it on a blue moon, causing zombie's to emerge disturbing their slumber."
"I've never understood the multiverse's fixation on zombies." Scrooge muttered. "Is the living dead the best constant we have between worlds?"
"From what I've seen, it's either a zombie or robot apocalypse." Max clarified. "The latter usually requiring time travel to fix."
"Well that's even stranger, considering this world doesn't even have technology." Carol waved around the tavern they were drinking in the Boiling Isles. "It doesn't, right?"
"Nothing like those weird light weapons or fancy screens you have. Most advanced thing we got is a steam boat." Eda nodded, before turning to Rose. "So what's the plan for when you have this kid? Teach it to decapitate demon squids? Have them travel space and blow up a planet?"
"Definitely not that last one." Rose stated firmly. "Although … I should come clean a bit … according to a scan the child's going to be part of me."
"Isn't that how all children work?" Carol asked. "We're just different parts of different people."
"Well my body isn't physical, it's just hard light sustained by my gem … which means he'll need it to sustain himself …" Why didn't she like the sound of that?
"I've seen something similar happen with other non-organic species." Max continued to explain in a sorrowful tone. "For the kid to be born…you'd have to give your gem to them."
The entire tavern went completely dead silent upon hearing the explanation. "Yikes…" Eda was the first to something after two minutes of silence. "That's fucked up."
"Eda!" Carol chastied.
"No, she's right … I can't even watch him say his first word …" She gave a weak chuckle. "Kinda messed up, unable to experience your own creation … but I don't regret it." Rose smiled.
"Him?" Scrooge looked up with a raised eyebrow.
"Mother's intuition. Hasn't stopped the betting pool if you want in."
"Nope, I didn't become the duck I am today by taking on a fool's gamble." Scrooge snickered. "Besides, I've seen Donald lose too many to Della."
"Well there's something to be said about a woman giving everything she has for her kid. You'd be a great mom, Rose." Carol smiled. "Kind of making me consider taking things to the next step with Laser Blast."
"You go girl, about time you two moved up to hand holding." They all snickered at the blush on her face. "What about you, Maxxy? Think you have time for another go-around." She asked the old timer.
"Not particularly. That part of my life is behind me like my days as a plumber." The man laughed. "I'm just gonna focus on reconnecting with my sons, they're about to get married themselves."
"I know whatcha mean. Della's been wanting to have a family of her own for quite a while." Scrooge smiled fondly. "She hasn't slowed down in the slightest though. Her last date she accidentally pushed her date into a tank of lobsters."
"Good for her, you can always get the freshest ones shoved in there." Eda smiled, noticing the looks of everyone else. "What?"
"It's disturbing how happily lacking you are in your morals." Carol replied.
"What I fight tooth and nail for the good stuff even on the best days. I take what I can get." Eda replied firmly. "Like seriously, is anyone else going to dive into the lobster tank first? I see a fine looking bad boy mama's gonna start snacking on."
"Speaking of mama's…" Rose smirked. "Has the elusive owl lady ever thought of having her own hatchling?"
"Ha ha." Eda sarcastically laughed. "Oh sure, because the cursed outlaw always on the run is clearly in the best position to have a family. Can you imagine me trying to watch a kid? Sounds like the start of a nightmare or bad joke."
"I'd probably call protective services." Max nodded. Like seriously, the day she got a kid was the day she'd eat her own foot.
"I can safely say that i'm the best one for child care." Scrooge smirked. "Right now my nephew and niece are-"
"COME BACK HERE!" Shouted some guards chasing two ducks.
"I told you not to touch that idol, Della!" She thought one of the ducks said. It was kind of hard to tell when the voice sounded like a choking monkey.
"It was pretty and no one was standing next to it!" The female duck defended.
"Well if I ever have a kid, I'll be sure to never count on you two for babysitting." Carol snickered. "Not sure if letting them travel the multiverse is a good idea either."
"Now, don't be too restrictive." Rose responded. "Traveling to another dimension is no different than traveling to another town. There's so much to learn, so many worlds with so many similarities and differences. So much impact in so little time." She looked down. "You're going to be just as amazing and interesting, little one … I just wish I could see it myself."
"They'll probably end up just as crazy and nice as you, you giant pink broad." Eda laughed.
Rose gave a nervous laugh in response. "Hopefully not the crazy part … lots of regrets there." She didn't see why, it wasn't like they were a tyrant or something.
"I'm sure they'll end up fine, Rose. As long as he's got family, he'll end up alright." Scrooge chugged down his drink. "Next few rounds are on me. I don't want to be sober tonight when I break the two knuckleheads out of jail."
"Again, rubbing it in my face you geezer."
"Says the six thousand year old wench." Hah, she was definitely going to miss the back and forth when the pink lady was gone.
========================================================================
Garnet took a breath of relief. "Alright, that's another corrupted gem down." She said, bubbling an old friend. "Only a thousand or so more to go." It was a long, tiring, and seemingly fruitless effort, but it was their effort.
"Ugh, you'd think after five hundred years of doing this I'd feel like we made a dent, but nadda." Amethyst rolled her eyes as she slumped down next to the warp pad. "How have you guys stayed sane doing this from the beginning?"
"Through hard work, training, art, meditation, dance.." Pearl began to trail off into a tangent. ", loyalty, discipline, reading, tea making.." Garnet felt like the gem would explode if she didn't have something to do every second of every day.
"Honestly, just myself is enough." Garnet smirked as she patted Amethyst on the back. I have you.And you have me. "You'll get into the swing of things, don't worry."
"Everyone has their own thing." Rose smiled to them. "Personally I think human interaction is quite the nice experience." Garnet liked it to, but always found the interaction part … awkward. Not that she didn't respect humans, they just more often than not proved to be…fragile around her.
"That's one gem's opinion of it I suppose." Pearl muttered bitterly to the side. The news of Rose's pregnancy was difficult to swallow, even with nine months of mental preparation. "Rose, you can tell me if Greg coerced you into this. I'm not sure how someone as fragile and weak as him could do so, but if he found a way I swear to the stars I will make him..!"
"Pearl." Rose put her hand on Pearl's shoulders. "I told you before, this is what I want." She smiled. "I want to create a life of my own, be a part of these people as they interact with the world … the incredible and ever changing nature of life." She could Amethyst fiddle awkwardly.
"So…when you…make this thing.." Amethyst looked at Rose's stomach. "You'll still be you, right, just smaller?"
"No … It'll be someone new." She leaned down, holding onto Amethyst tightly. "It's going to be a little sibling … someone to play with and make happy." Rose moved close. "Promise you'll give them the fun they deserve, okay?" Garnet heard them whisper.
"But a lot of the fun I have with you is because your so tall!" Amethyst squeezed their leader tightly. "I don't want you to go!"
"I won't be gone, not completely. Every laugh they'll have, every smile that they share, that'll be a piece of me in them, happy that they'll be around to share so many new and happy experiences with you."
Garnet nodded. "Even when they're gone, people we've met will still be with us, Amethyst." She looked up. "Affecting and changing us in ways we never knew any time we think back on their memory. As long as we remember her, Rose will never truly leave."
"Can't we remember her and have her with us too?" Pearl wiped the tears out of her eyes.
"You're already talking about me in the past tense." Rose giggled. "We still have a few moments, let's enjoy them while they last."
"Please Rose..please don't do this.." Pearls held onto the pink gem as well. "I don't know what I'll do without you."
"You'll still be that same renegade gem that inspired me all those years okay, my lovely little Pearl." Rose cupped Pearl's face with that close bond the two only shared with each other. "You'll still be able to live for yourself."
"But I don't want to live in a world where I won't get to hear your voice anymore!" She shouted. "To see your face … it's going to hurt!"
"I know it will, but my child will be there. They'll need you just like I have needed you." She kissed the pale woman right on the gemstone. "I couldn't imagine anyone better to have right by their side."
Pearl only looked away after giving a sad nod. "Even after all this time, I still can't predict anything that you do." Garnet smirked to her leader for what was probably going to be the last time.
"Well I hope the future will at least be clear enough for my child to live in peace." She chuckled, patting Garnet. "Sapphire and Ruby always wanted to experience 'couples parenthood', maybe this is your chance."
"This wasn't exactly how they imagined it would go." Truthfully they still didn't understand what was going to happen. The Sapphire half of her was convinced Rose was going to be a part of a permanent fusion like Garnet, and Ruby had no idea what to think. "You said before we were the answer, and it's taken me a long time to fully understand what you meant." She took off her glasses to look at Rose with all three of her eyes. "When you do something out of love, out of true, undeniable love, everything just falls into place."
Rose gave her a smile a warm smile. "And suddenly, the world makes a beautiful sense … when they fall in love, make sure to guide them on relationships." They began to whisper. "Pretty sure the others wouldn't get it."
"Oh I know." Pearl alone would be too obsessed with Rose to give any practical advice, and she was pretty sure Amethyst had more interest in a moldy slice of pizza than a relationship. "I'll be sure to give them tips on their first date, and the functions of how to have a stable fusion."
"That's my gem." They patted her. "Alright, everyone, group hug! Bring it in!" The Crystal Gems preceded the dog pile the best thing that happened in their lives.
It was an embrace full of tears, full of laughter, full of joy, and full of sadness. To think that soon, they would never be able to have this feeling with this amazing woman ever again. [Happy hug … oh]. "We should go." Garnet interrupted the moment, already gasping the tall gem.
"Why? In a hurry?" Rose asked with a teasing smile.
"Well your water's about to break, so you can answer that question yourself."
"About to.." Rose started to hunch over as she spoke, and a visible sign of pain was visible now on her face. "Oh Stars …"
"You held water in for that long?" Amethyst looked at the now wet ground. "Wow, kudos. I gotta up my shapeshifting game."
"It hurts, it hurts, it FUCKING HURTS!" Rose began hysterically screaming. "THE BUTTERFLIES WHERE NOT EXAGURATING THE FUCKING PAIN!"
"Alright, Rose, calm down." Pearl said, patting her. "We'll get you to a doctor, alright?"
"Yeah, I'm sure any random doctor is going to accept four random immortal rock ladies without asking any questions whatsoever." Amethyst rolled her eyes. "I thought you were the smart one, bird nose."
"I DON'T CARE IF THEY AIM GUNS! SOMEONE IS DELIVERING THIS BABY!!" Rose growled out.
"I believe this might be the best time to bring in Greg." Garnet stated calmly as she directed their leader to the warp pad. "Hell know how to proceed from here."
"Can't we leave him out of this?" Pearl asked sincerely.
"It's his baby too, and they're human, something we don't have much experience with." Garnet reminded the pale gem. "Also I'm starting to see Rose strangling us if someone doesn't do something."
They arrived at the warp pad, gently putting Rose on first. "Alright, you're up." They didn't quite know the risks involved with pregnant warping, so they'd do it one at a time.
"Good, good, good, good! I just got to clear my head for a minute and think of home, think of home, think of ho-oh my stars I can't do this! It Fucking hursts!" She let out a thunderous shock from her mouth, and for a brief second she thought the woman had glowed a shade more pinker than usual.
"Rose, calm down, just take a deep breath and..[static around the warp, more screaming, tears of sorrow] GET OFF THE WARP PAD, NOW!" She shouted, trying to move forward and push Rose off.
"What are you.." they're pregnant leader questioned as her hand was just about to reach Rose, only for an energy shockwave to repel her backwards. "Garnet!" Rose tried to reach out, but the static had trapped her on the warp, like a fly in a glass tube.
"ROSE!!" Pearl formed her spear, trying to use it as a lever to try and force an opening of any kind inside the warp pad. "Try and power through on your end!"
"I can't! Using too much could hurt the baby!"
"We'll lose both of you if you don't do something!" Screamed a desperate Amethyst, helping Pearl try and force a hole inside of the warp pad. "Garnet, you're the strong one, do something!"
"I..I.." Garnet hesitated for ten seconds. She didn't see this happening, and she couldn't look into a future where there wasn't any screaming or tears of utter despair coming from them. "I don't know, I don't know.."
"Find them!" Rose screamed as she began to vanish. "Please, whatever you do, find my chi-" And those were the last words ever spoken by Rose Quartz, the Gems unable to say or do anything, but cry in agony at the sight before them … the complete and utter loss of everything.
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Toffee was a patient man. He had to be. Long since he was born, he realized he was born with a gift when he realized his species superior regeneration powers. While many of his kind often used it as a means to get away with their reckless endeavors, he pushed his abilities to the brink.
He doubled his strength, he focused his healing prowess to heal injuries even those like Seth struggled to recover from, he diminished his ability to feel pain to zero (something that he believed was the biggest problem with his species), and even managed to gain control of the Septari. He would always be a fan of Seth, but he knew all students must rise above their masters.
This however, proved to not be enough. Even with the power to shrug off anything the mighty Rose Guard could throw, even when he managed to kill one of Mewni's Queen's, he was still not enough. Magic was still his greatest obstacle. As long as those like the commission and the Butterfly's had access to it, none of his strength or skill mattered.
Thus he began on his biggest endeavor yet. To understand what he hated, to learn about what he despised. Toffee had been researching magic, and those affiliated with it.
In this study, he not only learned much about the Butterfly family, but of their longest living ally as well. The way of the gems, their immortal bodies, their reliance on a single stone … and their affliction to a small un-notable rock known as 'earth'.
He could see the appeal Seth had to their kind. Their durability, their strength, their capability to be immortal. It was impressive…and threatening at the same time. If they could rival the Septari in so many ways, then he wouldn't take the chance that they might one day attempt to take them out as well.
So it came time to study all the ways to stop them … except for the main source of his problem. In all the records of Mewni history, there has never been a single instance of 'poofing' Rose Quartz, even when hit with the same attacks that poofed her companions. An unnatural durability of someone that could boost magic was not a good thing.
The only upside in recent years was the gem's absence from Mewni. Months after Moon drove everything he worked for down into the dirt, Rose Quartz had disappeared, running off on the little speck in the multiverse she called her home. While it made plotting against the Butterfly's easier, it made taking care of both problems all the more harder.
Then, after years of spying on both his enemies….the answer had fallen right into his lap. The key to crush all his problems in one fell swoop. A child.
A child that would have all the abilities of Rose Quartz, while she herself vanishes. And at the same time as Moon had one too. Two birds, one stone. So then it was just a matter of waiting, calculating, getting a not so minor degree in space technology, and figuring out the exact spots warp pads were located.
Once he narrowed down where they were, it was a matter of when he would place disruption crystal's along the main hub Rose's team used. They were good for only one use, but one was all he needed. For one warp only, he'd be in control of where Rose Quartz landed and ended up, and no one would be none the wiser as to where.
And now here he was, watching her fall to the ground in utter confusion. "Rose Quartz." He smirked. "We meet agai-" He woke up a few minutes later, if her panting was anything to go by. "You really have to stop caving my brain matter in."
"I….swore…to kill you the moment I saw your stupid snout again." Rose growled as she ripped his arms and legs off. "I don't know what the hell just happened, and frankly, I don't care. You chose the worst time for your to die."
"Actually, my timing couldn't have been more perfect, and last I checked, you're the one at death's door." He smirked. "Unless you want that spawn of yours to bite the dust."
That made the woman pause. "How do you..?"
"As someone who hates magic, timing this was a pain. But lucky for me, i'm very good at predicting things … had to witness some things I'd rather not though." Toffee calmly told the screaming woman trying to break open his skull once more "It was hard enough watching Moon get all sappy with River Johansson, watching you with that street rat musician was more than I could handle frankly.".
"YOU BASTARD!" She shouted, before screaming in pain.
"But look on the bright side." He smiled. "Your child will be of great use to my plans."
"Stay away from them!" Rose cried out once more.
"Oh i'm afraid I can't do that … big plans in store you see. The destruction of Mewmans and all that." He smirked down at the woman in agony. "I may not know entirely what you are, but I do know you enhance magic. If your child's power's are as volatile as I predict they will be, then imagine what that'll do to poor princess Star Butterfly's magic….." He loved the utterly bafflement of the gem.
"She had a child …" Rose gave a death stare. "You sadistic, low life, bastard." The woman growled at him.
"Yes … now come on, chop chop." He gave a sarcastic clap. "Baby time … or he can die and I watch you suffer for it."
"Your not going to get away with this.." Rose fell to the ground. "My friends.."
"Have no idea where you disapeared, and will never think to look here." He smirked. "After all, a warp pad taking someone to a Mewni? I never heard of such a thing." Toffee laughed. "Face it, pinky, I've planned for everything to go my way. Count yourself fortunate I'll need the two brats alive until Star receives the wand. After that…who knows what'll happen to them?"
"You'll never win." Rose spoke defiantly, her body glowing brighter and brighter.
"Oh Rose …" He gave a toothy grin. "I already have.
The woman let out one more rebellious cry of anguish until there was nothing but white light. Two seconds later, it died down, revealing a small fleshy colored blob that had a head of cutely brownish black hair.
"Such a waste of immortality. Giving it all up for an inferior creature such as this." If he was a petty man, he would've drowned the brat out right here and now, and laughed at extinguishing the mighty Rose Guard's light.
But that was an old him. The new one simply wrapped the child in pink clothing and showed off his sharp teeth, forcing a bubble to pop around the kid protectively as he gently placed them in a stream. Thanks to his research, he knew by know that the old fool River was out in the woods on yet another 'speech'. The baby would be found by the clown of the king, and the two keys of his plan would finally meet
Toffee gave a chuckle under his breath. "Congratulations... you'll doom them all just by existing, Steven Universe…"
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Rose licked her master happily. "Down girl, down." Why would they go down? It was so much fun being up. "Oh, I can't stay mad at you, little girl." Her master rubbed her head. "Could've sworn I hooked you outside."
"Sorry dad, I let her lose." Her master's kin said as she rubbed the back of her neck.
"It's fine. Better Rose than one of the Centiceratops." He glared at her kin. "You really should've trained them by now."
"But they're so adorable, I can't say no to the little guys."
"They're two stories each."
"That just makes their hearts all the more bigger." The kin laughed. "Besides, I've heard the stories from all the grandmas and gems. You kept bringing in strays when you were my age too." She smirked. "Corrupted gems, a magic lion, a goat, living fruit, and who can forget about Steven jr." The kin pointed to an old feline coughing up a hairball.
"Yeah, tough little girl. She's the only normal pet and just keeps going." The blonde boy with lightning bolts came into the room. "I'm convinced she's going to outlive us all
"Normal?" The kin asked. "She loads guns and shoots them off at intruders. Especially when Mariposa and Meteora sleep over."
"Yeah, even Agent P's scared of her." The master shuddered thinking of the night of the 'big kazoo'. So many flaming bunnies and burnt donuts. "But she's still part of the family,and we accept her all the same. Isn't that right Rose?"
"Bark!" Woopsie, a beam hit a wall.
"If I ever get a pet in the house I buy, it's going to be a goldfish." The blonde boy groaned.
"Come on Comet, who'd ever want to leave this place!" The kin cheered. "It's full of everyone who loves you the most in the world…except Rocka, but once you marry her she can move in."
"Could you like, imagine taking a relationship slow, for five minutes?" The blonde asked with a tone of exasperation.
"Mmmm nope." The kin shook her head. "I already tried making a baby, but nobody wants to tell me how."
"You're not going to know until you're fourteen. That's when I learned, and trust me, it still haunts me to this day." Her master shuddered once more.
"Laaame." The kin sighed. "I'm gonna go hang by Xavier and Fred, see if they're building anything today."
"Good luck. Oh, and if you see the Flynn-Fletcher boys from the past pop up, make sure not to give away any spoilers about the future to them." Her master warned
"Yeah yeah, space time paradox." The kin waved off. "Seriously, I haven't even time traveled, yet this lesson keeps getting drilled in my head."
"You'll thank me for it later, because it WILL happen." Her master laughed. "That girl is so much like your Mom, Comet, back before our adventures became serious.".
"... You say that like the fact we've almost died due to elder gods and sentient planets as non serious." The blonde said with a bit of sweat.
"No, they are, they just lacked the personal threat most of our enemies had." Her master sighed. "Even with that said, I wouldn't change a thing that happened. Not even the bad stuff my mom did."
"Even the stuff where Dad and Mom committed atrocities in your household?"
"…Trust me when I say me and Luz are still making him pay for that." Her master grumbled before shaking his head. "But no. Everything that happened in the past eventually led to everything we have now. I have a family that just keeps getting bigger and bigger, that's not something everyone in the universe gets to experience."
The blonde was silent, looking thoughtful as they walked away. "One day he'll get it." The master smiled as he scratched her head. "Seriously though, i've gotta put you outside. Me and Kelly barely get alone time and she's been scratching me up for ages." Oh, her master's mate was experiencing her heat cycle. Best to comply. She wanted to see if her master would produce more pups for her to lick.