(Alternate) Steven Universe x Corrupt gem reader Insert

part 76: the "truth" hurts

"Steven-?!"

Spinel calls, tripping over herself as she and steven burst into the beach house, steven slamming the door shut behind him in his horror filled haste, prompting a familiar thin gem to snap upright from her task. "Steven, don't slam the door!"

However; Pearl's reprimand fell on deaf ears as steven was too terrified to even register the rules as he looked at the two gems in the living room with wide frantic eyes. "AMEYTHYST! PEARL! WE NEED TO SNAKE PROOF THE HOUSE!"

"Why?" Pearl asked, her eyes scanning the door behind steven with a raised brow. "Where's (name)?"

Spinel scratched the back of her head awkwardly. "Well uhm-"

Steven suddenly cut her off, his voice filled with urgent panic. "TO STOP THE SNAKE PEOPLE!"

"Uh..." Ameythyst chuckled slightly. "Snake people?"

Steven's cheeks darkened with with modest anger at the purple gem's obvious skepticism. How could she be laughing at such a serious matter?

"What's so funny about sneople?! Look at this!" He then pulls out his phone, holding it out to show them his recent discoveries.

His first picture of "evidence" were the holes in the cliff face.

"That must be from when we fought those drill parasites on the beach." Pearl answered nonchalantly, catching the boy off guard with how quick she was to do so.

"Well, what about this?" His next picture was the jagged red rocks that jut out of the ground at the boardwalk.

"That looks like pieces of that red eye we blew up!" Ameythyst chirped, raising steven's alarm even more with how excited she almost sounded.

"Well, what about this!?" His final picture is of the pink gem flowers that grew on the bin behind big donut.

"Aww, it's the flowers from rose's moss." Pearl notes light-heartedly.

The realization of everything strikes steven all at once, and he slaps his head at the revelation. "Is all the weird stuff that happens in beach city because of us?!"

"Well... yeah." Pearl replies plainly. "Obviously."

"Huh..." spinel tilted her head. "(name) said she knew that stuff couldn't be done by snakes. Or people." She giggled softly, seeming relieved at the revelation. "Good thing she was right that then, right steven? No sneople to worry about!" She smiles at the boy, who was far from relieved at the revelation, grasping his head in disbelief. Numbly, he turns around and walks towards the door, reeling from such a shock.

"I need some air..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Augh! (Name) already told Ronaldo! Crater is not made by sneople!" You growled angrily, your fur bristling in irritation. "Sneople not here! Sneople not anywhere! Go home!"

"Silence, behemoth! I can't focus on investigating this crater's purpose with your doubtful doubts in my ear!"

He remains crouched in the crater, staring down at the cast he had placed over it pensively, before looking up at your form, his glasses glinting in the sun, hiding his suspicious glaring eyes. "Unless of course you're..." there was a pause, possibly for dramatic effect. "...Hiding something?"

You growled at the blonde nuisance in the down in the crater, steadily losing your patience with the delusional lad, ready to drag him back home by the scruff.

"Ronaldo?"

You both look up to see Steven and spinel standing on the beach house's porch looking down at you both with concern. "Everythin' okay down there?"

"Steven! Did you see this crater? I think the snake people left it as a sign." He then directs his sharp gaze back at you. "Isn't that right, alien mother?"

You snorted angrily at the accusing jeer, biting back words that wouldn't be appropriate to say in front of the young ones.

"Yeah..." steven and spinel exchanged glances between each other, and approached you both, steven looking rather uneasy. "Uh... Ronaldo?"

Ronaldo tears his conspiratorial gaze off you to give steven a near cartoony smile on his face. "Yes, steven?"

"Are you... totally sure about this "Snake people" thing?"

As soon as he said this, Ronaldo's smile fell into a disheartened expression. "Steven... are you having doubts?" His eyes narrowed and he casted you a side glare. "Is it the alien mother's aura?"

"Not really just... doubts. Or (name)." He hesitated. "Me and spinel just found out that those weird holes in the cliff were just something me and the gems did."

"Well, okay." Ronaldo didn't seem too phased at first. "But those red rocks..."

"That was us." Steven admitted.

"But, the flowers..."

"Them too." Spinel shrugged, wearing an uneasy smile.

"But... but the truth...!"

"The truth isn't what Ronaldo thought it was." You finished flatly.

"Sure it is!" Ronaldo insisted. "Don't get hung up on these minor facts. Truth is about more than that, Truth is a feeling in your gut that you know is true! Truth is searching for anything that proves you're right no matter how small, and holding onto that no matter what!"

Steven and spinel shared awkward, uncomfortable glances. "That kinda sounds like the opposite of the truth."

"Look! The proof!" Ronaldo already had his attention returned to the cast on the crater's center. "This cast will show the true face of this conspiracy."

"Oh, wha-huh?" Lifting the cast, he finds that the imprint on it looks exactly like steven, though it had a pained expression on its face.

"That's probably from steven tag." Steven concludes, looking guilty.

This brought ronaldo's world crashing down. "What!?"

"It's a really fun game the gems play," Spinel elaborates cheerfully. "When steven tags one of us, we-"

She was halted by Ronaldo's hand, who wore the most disheartened look you've seen on him. "I'm not really at the center of anything..." he utters, staring at the mold pensively. "...I'm nothing."

With that, he rises to his feet and walks off in utter gloom, dragging his cast along a few steps before it breaks on a rock, leaving him empty handed.

"Don't worry, steven." You assured, nuzzling his head gently. "Ronaldo will be fine. Ronaldo just need time to think. Don't worry about it."

Steven merely hummed, hugging your forearm, while spinel leaned against you with a worried expression. "Are... ya sure, (name)? He looked really sad."

"Ronaldo was hit with the real truth. It will hurt for a while, but he'll get over it." You replied matter-of-factly.

"How hard can he take it?"