(Alternate) Steven Universe x Corrupt gem reader Insert

part 10: who is that..?

a few more hours of contentment go by, and during which, you really did start to lighten up. you become much more interactive with steven and lion. in fact, you felt motivated to try and learn a bit more about steven. he IS your best bud after all. you start by allowing him to tour you around his small loft, introducing you to all of his toys, favorite movies, and the spectacular activity of drawing. though you couldn't deny that it was a bit of a challenge, given how big your hands were. holding a pen was proven most difficult. such tiny implements! but it taught you how to be more careful with your massive hands. there's a lot to the human culture, isn't there? such perplexing yet interesting beings..

right know, you were laying on the ground, doodling random designs on a piece of paper, getting used to having to hold such a small tool, while Steven laid against your flank, reading a book, while lion did his own things. it was around this time, you look up toward the door, wondering what you and Steven can do on that soft sandy beach. just how many things can we come up with?

that was when your eyes flicked up to the large portrait hanging above it. oh... who is that? With everything you had endured with the Crystal Gems, you hardly had a chance to look up at it, let alone identify it. Heck, you weren't even aware of it until now.

Steven took a moment to look up from his book to peer at your face. "(name)?" he follows your gaze to where you were staring. "oh! that's just a painting." He chirps cheerfully. "it's a painting of.." his voice becomes soft.

"my mom."

you turn back at him, eyes wide in interest. your... mom..? "Murrooo?" taking your noise as a question, he nods. "yeah. she was the originally the leader of the crystal gems, you know." he sounded a bit quiet for some reason. you stared at him for a few moments. he looked solmn, almost. wonder why..? redirecting your attention to the large portrait, you squint your eyes slightly, to try and get a clear image of the figure... but there was just so much... pink that you couldn't see it from that distance. "are you okay, (name)?" your lower lip puckers out slightly in a slight pout. rrgh... I need a closer look..

With a grunt, you suddenly stand up, eyes still trained on the painting, you trot over to the portrait, and rear up onto your hind legs, and press your midarms against the doorframe for balance. up close, the person in the picture was much clearer. oh, wow... she's... really pretty. "um... w-what are you doing? (name)?" Steven sounded almost worried from how close you stood to the picture, but you didn't notice it. you were too busy analyzing the rather pretty being in the portrait.

she had pale skin and long fluffy, curly pink hair that matched up with her skin tone quite well. her lips were full and had a transparent, pink glossy sheen to them. her eyes were shut, like she were in a peaceful, daydreaming state. your eyes then fell to her attire; a pure white dress, with a star cut out on its belly. that was when you noticed her round, pink... navel...? you blinked a few times, grunting in confusion. wait... what? you squinted your eyes and peered closer at the round thing in bewilderment, wondering what its purpose there was. though,the longer you stared at it, the more obvious it became.

..isn't... that a-

"what do you think you're doing?"

a sharp voice cuts through the silence, startling you bad to the point you jerked away from the door amd lost your balance, falling onto your back with a resounding THUD! shaking off your daze, you brave a look up, squeaking in fear at pearl looming over you, hands on her hips, staring down at you in what appears to be irritation. "what were you just doing to that portrait?" well uh... you lay on your back twiddling your thumbs on all four hands as you a nervous growl droned in your throat, as if you were trying to search for an answer. "sh-she was just looking at it, pearl!" steven spoke up. pearl looked over as steven, looking almost skeptical. "She wasn't really doing anything wrong!" pearl crossed her arms. "why would she need to be so close??" steven, to your dismay, itched his head, muttering phrases like "uh" and "um" and "well" while pearl watched with pursed lips. you clasped all four of your hands together, getting more tense by the minute. why is she so defensive over such a portrait?? pearl finally sighed and returned her gaze to you laying at her feet. "that portrait is off limits. you will keep your distance from it. understood?" you nodded hurriedly, hoping to calm the thin gem's terse behavior.

to your relief, she softens a bit, crossing her arms and giving a soft, satisfied "good." in response. with that she walks away, disappearing into the blue door. guh... must she be so uptight? you sit up, glaring thinly at the door pearl left through before returning your attention to the massive portrait.

what's the deal with that woman anyway..?
~~~~~~~~~~

you spent the rest of the day in Steven's loft, laying on the cool floor, drawing quietly to yourself while the others went about their day. every once in a while, your eyes would flick to the large portrait hanging over the door. while you do take in her soft, motherly features and the beautiful shades of pink around her, your attention would always be lost to her gemstone, to which you'd stare at for long periods of time. such a pretty gem it was. you haven't seen a gem that beautiful for as far as you remembered... sometimes, your mind would wander, and you'd often wonder where she could have originated... what drove her to create this little group. it must be a good one.

sometimes, you'd be so wrapped up in your thoughts that you'd fail to notice the gems, notably pearl watching you from the kitchen, concern etched in her features.