Lost and Found

by Apollofizz

Summary:

This was stupid.

Peridot had already decided this was stupid.

Orientation?? It was already stupid enough that she was forced to come to this alienated school, so far away from her home and all her lack of friends, but forcing her to sit through an orientation?

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AKA, College AU with Peridot and The Gems. Peridot has recently moved to Beach City to attend their college, purely there to study and try not to get picked on. Unfortunately for the introvert, a group of students have taken a liking to her.

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Inspired by Perfectly Flawed by Ryuji_Izumi

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Tags updated as the fic goes on!!

Notes:

• Inspired by Perfectly Flawed by Ryuji_Izumi

Chapter 1: Orientation

This was stupid. 

 

Peridot had already decided this was stupid. 

 

Orientation?? It was already stupid enough that she was forced to come to this alienated school, so far away from her home and all her lack of friends, but forcing her to sit through an orientation? That was another level of torture. Sitting in a room with a group of idiotic people she didn’t know had always been her least favourite activity, one she’d had to endure for too long at various schools. At least she had a knack for seeming invisible in crowds. She could blend in and be avoided, as long as she didn’t show any outburst of emotion that may catch the attention of some cloddy bully with a particular knack for sensing weird kids.

 

Peridot just had to sit here for an hour, tuning out the noises of people talking and teachers droning on and on about topics she did not care for. Clubs this, Lunch study that. She was a professional at tuning out lectures, boring ones in particular. She already had her days planned down to the second, how could she not with Yellow Diamond for a mother! She simply had no use listening to club leaders as they walked up to talk about their extracurriculars. Peridot’s timetable was all meticulously calculated, and her slight fear of her mother’s authority stopped her from defying it. It was perfect, of course. Just like she was expected to be.

 

Peridot found a quiet seat near the back but not too far back, and on the edge of a row so people wouldn’t surround her quite as much. There was a group of girls behind her, and a few kids vaguely sat in front and to the side of her, but none talked to her. She wasn’t a social person, and she didn’t find unwanted eavesdropping or unwanted social interaction to be her idea of fun. 

 

Her thoughts were fully focused on the book in front of her, a notebook full of scribbles, doodles and what she referred to as ‘log notes’. Her logs were journal entries, though they were much cooler than stupid journaling. They detailed her everyday life, all filled in until now, College. She had a new book for College, and so far, it simply contained; 

 

“Day One.

 

CLODS.

 

- Peridot”

 

Truth be told, she already disliked this school’s level of disorganisation. ‘Best school in the state’, and yet the orientation took place a week after the term had started?! Pah, she could do better than this, but her mother had forced her here, so Peridot had to endure. Ugh, at least they had a good engineering department. She could work here, learn here, engage in an hour or two of socialisation here, as long as she fit in her mother’s requirement of dual courses. Which of course meant double the work. 

 

At the end of what felt like the World’s Longest Lecture, Peridot shoved her notebook, a green one decorated with cartoon alien stickers and doodles from her favourite show, ‘Camp Pining Hearts’, back into her green denim satchel and exited the hall silently, only slightly tripping up. Her stupid legs had fallen asleep from all that sitting. She had to pace before scampering off to her table where she could ignore the real purpose of lunch period and tinker instead. No one noticed her as per usual, though she could’ve sworn she felt eyes on her as she walked. Peridot just muttered something unintelligible under her breath and headed for the only secluded spot she knew. A quiet and muddy bench near the bushes, perfect for random non-eating activities.

 

Peridot loved tinkering. Her favourite thing to do was take an everyday appliance and take it apart, each piece like a perfect puzzle that could be enhanced by just moving that wire, or carefully removing a useless screw. She was so enveloped in her tinkering that she barely noticed when her alarm rang, signalling the end of her designated lunch period. She had an approved schedule from her mother that sectioned off time for all her activities, and her lunch period was now over. Back to studying. 

 

Peridot scrambled to her feet, shoes squelching in the mud. An ominous cloud covered the sun, and rain began to fall as she half fell over the bench, shoving her project into her bag so forcefully she was certain she’d heard something snap. Eh, what was one more singed hole in her bag. She sprinted as fast as her little legs could carry her, which wasn’t that fast, wanting to get to her dorm as soon as she could. You’d think after years of running away from idiots bullying her, she’d be faster, but no. She was imperfect. A disgrace. No wonder her mother sent her away. 

 

The soles of her dark green Converse splashed in puddles as rain soaked her similarly dusky green denim jacket. Her jacket almost matched her bag, except her bag was a darker green and was singed in places from projects she hadn’t quite finished before being shoved in her satchel. Her white shirt was decorated with similar cartoon images of aliens from her book and her flared jeans bore messily stitched ‘Camp Pining Hearts’ and alien patches. Her fluffy blonde hair, usually floofed up in an almost triangle shape at the top aside from the sides, which were tucked neatly behind her ears, was being slightly flattened by the rain, making her look a little like a wet paintbrush. She narrowed her green eyes and squinted. An oversized sleeve protected her glasses, green-rimmed and alien-motifed, from getting so rained upon that she was rendered blind.

 

This meant she was not looking where she was going. Peridot stumbled, tripping over a crack in the pavement and crashed right into the unfamiliar body of a girl of a similar height to her and her taller friend group under the covering that sheltered the entrance to the dorms. 

 

The duo crashed to the dusty ground and Peridot heard something snap as she landed, heart sinking. She immediately scrambled to her feet, ignoring the searing pain coming from her leg and thought about running away, but the group seemed to notice her lopsided stance and prevented her from leaving. Peridot stumbled over her words as she took a step backwards, almost falling over before being caught in even more unfamiliar arms. 

 

“Ah! I– Sorry– I um.” Peridot mumbled, holding her hands close to her chest as her cheeks flushed a deep pink. 

The girl who caught her chuckled good-naturedly as one of the others helped the girl she’d knocked over to her feet too. 

“Nah, no hard feelings.” The girl, now brushing herself off, replied, “I fall over so often it's practically a given.” 

She had an odd voice, slightly squeaky and a tad breathy. She spoke with confidence, a lining of humour in her voice. The comment snapped her back to observing. Now Peridot could see who she’d run into better, she realised she vaguely recognised the girl helping the smaller girl to her feet. She was in her mechanics class, what was her name? Ah, Peridot couldn’t remember. 

 

The group consisted of a short, plump girl with dyed white hair and brown skin, wearing a black tank top, ripped jeans and a thin jacket. She smiled goofily, resting her hands on her hips as she observed the nerd in front of her. She seemed mostly unscathed from the tumble, just a little dusty.

 

To the right of her stood a slender, pale girl who practically towered over the smaller one. Her hair was dyed too, light pink and curly. It curled neatly around her ears and on her forehead. Her light blue eyes unnerved the blonde a little, but her gentle yet slightly strict demeanour as she fretted about the girl Peridot had so unceremoniously bowled over proved she wasn’t as intimidating as she first thought. She wore yellow shorts paired with a short dress and a patterned cardigan. Blue flats were accompanied by pink socks, and her outfit was perfected with a purse.

 

The person who’d caught her was the tallest of the group with dark brown skin, a neat afro and sunglasses she wore even though it was dark from the rain and the cover. Her hair bore two streaks of colour, one red and one blue, and she had piercings and rings to match. Her outfit seemed the most sensible out of the group, consisting of jeans, a colourful shirt, boots and a jacket with more pockets than seemed necessary. She kept a grip on Peridot’s shoulders, supporting her and her injury that was more of a lack of balance than anything.

 

The girl Peridot had only just noticed was leaning against a pillar, laughing quietly at the whole ordeal. The blonde’s cheeks flushed a deeper pink as she noticed the laughter, embarrassed to have interrupted such a close group. The girl had tan skin and the most mesmerising ocean blue eyes. Dyed hair seemed to be a rite of passage for this group, because the girl had deep blue hair, too. Luckily, If Peridot wanted to fit in, the sides of her hair tucked behind her ears were already dyed a lime green. The girl wore a loose sweater and baggy joggers, accompanied by crocs and a headband. It complemented her perfectly, and Peridot couldn’t help but stare at the way her muscular frame moved when she smiled and laughed… 

 

Peridot shook her head, as if to remind herself of the social situation she had no escape from. She just squeaked pathetically, attempting to shy away from the taller girl’s grip but to no avail. 

 

“You’re Peridot, right?” The smallest girl asked, that smile still on her lips. Peridot frowned, immediately jumping to confrontation. How did this girl know her name?! But before she could speak, she was cut off by the girl talking again. “Saw your book in the lecture hall. I’m Amethyst, but everyone calls me Ame.”

 

“Literally only we call you Ame, you fraud.” The thin girl scoffed, rolling her eyes. Her voice was a little scratchy, but it was also smooth. She spoke with a note of a know-it-all, and Peridot immediately decided that they would get along.

“That’s Pearl.” Amethyst shoved Pearl playfully, who was about to rant about the smaller girl’s dare to do such a thing before she too was swiftly cut off.

 

“The girl behind you is-“ And Amethyst was cut off too. 

“Garnet. And the girl laughing over there is Lapis Lazuli.” The tallest girl, Garnet, spoke smoothly, her voice like a warm fire. She, too, was smiling down at Peridot, still supporting the smaller girl’s weight. “Oh stop pretending you weren’t laughing just a moment ago.” Lapis was scowling now, flipping off garnet lightheartedly. “You took a big fall there.” Garnet stated, turning her attention back to the blonde, “I know Amethyst’s fine. You looked hurt.”

“I– I’m fine–“ Peridot lied, “Now, please, if you wouldn’t mind, I have far more important matters to attend to, so if you could just let me through to my quarters–“

 

Peridot managed to scramble free, ducking under Garnet’s arms and making a break for it until her leg gave way, and she almost fell right into the pavement. Lapis was the one to catch her this time, and the cool grasp of lithe hands on her bony shoulders was enough to send a shiver down her spine. 

 

“Woah there, missy.” Lapis teased, her voice as cool as an icy lake and as warm as a fire melting snow. She sounded as she looked. “Don’t fall over again, We heard something snap, now just let us help you to your dorm. Where’s it at?”

 

Peridot tensed, suddenly realising how many people’s eyes were fixed on her so intensely. Now, she knew they probably weren’t glaring at her, but it felt like they were! Something about the way Lapis spoke however… It made her blush even more, and it sparked an odd feeling in her. She chalked it up to nerves. There were four people around her, and they were all expecting her to answer. “Second– Second floor, apartment 18.” Peridot answered.

 

“Second floor it is. Maybe you can even actually talk to us on the way there.” 

 

Unfortunately for Peridot, They insisted they take her to her room, all the way to her door, and Amethyst and Lapis insisted on staying a little longer. Luckily, Pearl and Garnet both had more important things to do than interrogate an innocent stranger. They left that job for the duo that stayed to keep Peridot company. Peridot insisted she didn’t want or need the company, but she let them stay anyway for some odd reason. Perhaps she wanted a friend? Perhaps she was intimidated? Probably the latter, but that was the reason two girls were helping her onto her plushie-covered bed and gawking at her semi-spacious, decorated room. 

 

“PERIDOT. Peridot. Peri. Dot.” Amethyst half shouted, “Peri, you have a room to yourself. You have your own bathroom. You are magic for acquiring a room like this.”

 

Peridot tensed once again, wanting the girls to just leave her apartment. “Yeah. Something like that.”

 

She did not want these girls to know that her mother was, oh, you know, just the incredibly powerful co-owner and co-founder of Diamond Inc, the billion-dollar company with reach on everything. These girls weren’t, and would never be, her friends. She had no friends, and she was fine pretending she was fine without. She had her robots. 

 

But something about Lapis…

 

“Peridot. I am sleeping over sometime and you can’t stop me, this room is like a gold mine.” Lapis half laughed.

 

 All things considered, the room wasn’t that big. Just a regular dorm room with two beds, a window, a small kitchenette and one thing rooms didn’t usually have, a bathroom to herself. Alright, they didn’t usually have a kitchenette either, but that was beside the point. The point was, her mother only did this for her because she didn’t want Peridot embarrassing her. The diamond image was perfection, and she was already imperfect enough. 

 

The rest of Peridot’s room was normal enough. The spare bed was neatly made, aside from a few stray items of clothing and a few random projects. The floor was at least visible, but she definitely needed to tidy. Her bed sank under her weight, and her alien-themed bedding was still a mess from her rolling out of bed in the morning. Her kitchen was neat from her lack of using it, and the bathroom was certainly neater than the main living area. Despite the mess, Lapis and Amethyst fangirled some more before sitting in front of a half-zoned-out Peridot, gazing up at her expectantly.

 

“Sorry, what?” Peridot mumbled, rubbing her eyes. Her phone buzzed in her pocket, but she didn’t bother checking. It was probably a lecture from her mother or a notification about a game, nothing important. 

 

Lapis was the one to respond. “What’s with the flag?” She queried, gesturing up to her green Camp Pining Hearts flag that resembled the Canadian flag. A blush crept up her pale cheeks again as she avoided eye contact.

 

“Just a show I like. Nothing important.” Peridot mumbled, “Don’t you two have dorms to get back to? Homework to do?”

 

The duo laughed, Amethyst falling back onto the plush green carpet behind her.

“Yeah, P-Dot, we aren’t exactly... Studious.” Amethyst said through laughter, “But if you want us gone, just answer three questions. And give us your phone so we can add you to the group chat.”

 

Peridot rolled her eyes before registering that last bit. Add her to the group chat? She was a part of this inner circle already, after barely an hour of knowing these girls?? This was absurd! Nothing had prepared her for making friends so quickly– Surely it took time, not just almost breaking a leg and knocking over a member of their group?! They’d all seemed to silently agree that Peridot was instantly theirs now.

 

“Ffffffine–” Peridot rolled her green eyes, folding her arms in a pout that Lapis found adorable. She handed over her phone and stared expectantly at the duo, awaiting her first question.

 

“What’s with the decorations?” Lapis asked, “And explain for real this time!”

 

Peridot gazed up at her flag and then around at the rest of the decorations. It was all aliens and Camp Pining Hearts. “My interests– Just a show about a camp and their activities, and sometimes relationships. It’s really interesting because–“ Peridot stopped herself from rambling, deciding to not bore these two already, “And- and I just like aliens.”

 

Lapis and Amethyst exchanged a look that Peridot couldn’t quite understand, but her questions were swiftly interrupted by Amethyst’s question. “Okay, random one. Favourite game?” 

 

“I don't play many games.” Peridot admitted, “I want to, but I don’t have any time. I just study.”

“Wh– really?? But like, surely you have some time?? Like, the weekends???” Amethyst raised her hands in frustration, just wanting to kidnap Peridot and make her play a game.

Peridot just shrugged. 

 

“My mother is strict. Gotta study.”

 

“Right. Third question.” Lapis shuffled closer to Peridot, handing her phone back, “You busy?”

Amethyst laughed and Peridot blushed, tightening her grip around her phone. They wanted to hang out with her?? With her ??

 

“Well, I– I’m sure I could find time—” 

 

“Well, that’s perfectly adequate then.” Lapis mimicked Peridot’s tone good-naturedly as she got to her feet, helping Amethyst do the same. 

 

“Right. Well keep our promise, but you gotta message us! See you later, Peridot.” 

 

Peridot waited until the door was slammed shut before running to lock it. She then ran back to her bed, practically skipping. She would’ve jumped on her bed excitedly if it weren’t for her leg hurting. Instead, she just lay there, kicking her feet and squealing excitedly. She’d made a friend.

Chapter 2: Love Like You

Summary:

Peridot hangs out with the group.

 

The next morning was exhausting. Peridot spent all night staring at her contacts, wondering how she’d managed to get the numbers of four people simply by falling over. It was absurd! She was used to having all of about three contacts, two of which were just update newsletters, and the other was her mother. She didn’t talk to many people, and her mother had previously approved her contacts, so it was odd to see new contacts. The grand total was eight of them now. Eight numbers?? And they wanted to hang out with her ?? Not only did she have their numbers, but now she was in a group chat with them! That was even more absurd. 

 

Well, the logical solution to this problem was to avoid the girls. They probably just wanted to make fun of her, that was most likely their true intention. ‘Yeah, let’s all be friends with the weird kid!’ Said no one ever. It wouldn’t be too difficult to avoid them all. She knew a lot of their vague routines from seeing them around the first week, and she knew she shared two classes with Pearl. Sure, this was in but she was always hyper-focused on her work, and they sat away from each other, so she wouldn’t be impossible to avoid. 

 

Garnet… Garnet was a wildcard. Peridot didn’t know her timetable at all, and she was rather spontaneous when it came to when she was on campus or not. Lapis liked to skip lessons, but she hung around the grounds so she could talk to Amethyst, Garnet, and Pearl. Peridot vaguely knew their habits and preferences for hanging out locations, and she had her own bench, so she could avoid the girls by sticking to her secluded spot away from campus mayhem. 

 

Amethyst was even more unpredictable than Garnet. At least with Garnet, she had some habits, but Amethyst was more of a ‘spur of the moment’ kind of girl. Peridot had no clue how to avoid her, but hopefully, she could just blend into the background. She was good at avoiding people like that. Just ignore and they would forget. At least, that was the gist.

 

Peridot sighed, sitting up at last. She wriggled free from her alien duvet and ran a hand through her messy blonde poof of hair. She swung her legs around, staring at the ground for a moment longer as the sun shone through the window above her bed and lit up her room. The sun illuminated her messes and projects, making her sigh with annoyance with the reminder that she would need to tidy later. It also illuminated her prosthetics. Her broken, high-end prosthetics that she’d snapped the previous day when she’d so carelessly tripped over. Because she was imperfect. Not good enough for anyone, especially her mother. The perfectionist with a perfectionist for a daughter. A perfectionist with a flaw. 

 

Peridot ran her hand over the stumps that were her legs. Her left, where her leg had been amputated at the knee, a fact her mother hated more than anything because it meant she had to spend more money on a better and more advanced prosthetic to make her daughter more normal, was chafed and sore from the fall, the skin rubbed raw. Her right was amputated a little ways below the knee, so it didn’t require as advanced a prosthetic. It too was chafed, blistered and red from where the prosthetic had bent at an odd angle when something had snapped. This idiocy meant a message to her mother and a few days of using a more simple prosthetic. It all meant soreness and a limp, which she could handle for a few days …and that dreaded response from her mother, acting as if she were just some employee who had messed something up.

 

When she checked her phone, a notification from the previous day shone, unread and glaring. It was from her mother. Because of course, it was. She skimmed the paragraphs of text she’d sent, ending with a simple and brief; ‘- Yellow Diamond.’, getting the gist of it. She’d left too much of her weird interests behind. A flag, some plushies. The house wasn’t overly decorated with it, but she must’ve left one of her plants with a novelty plant pot out because Yellow was mad. Something about ruining her pristine image? ‘What would White and Blue think?!’ Gee Mother, She didn’t know. Perhaps they’d think your daughter was normal? But she wasn’t supposed to be normal. She was supposed to be perfect, and having weird interests wasn’t perfectionism. 

 

Aside from those paragraphs, Peridot had a few messages from a group chat, named ‘The Gems’. Apparently, this was an edit from Garnet after a naming fight between Amethyst and Pearl. Amethyst was insistent the group needed to have a funny name, and Pearl kept changing it to something serious. Garnet had intervened and had changed it to the most logical name, the thing they were all coincidentally named after, Gems. The group chat wasn’t too busy, just a few messages. Scratch that, she’d scrolled down and Amethyst and Lapis had tagged her far too many times to be normal. Being exhausted, Peridot didn’t really read what they wanted. Which was probably a mistake given their combined level of chaos. 

 

After Peridot finally worked up the energy to slip her prosthetics on, she got to her feet, wincing as the plastic rubbed against the sore skin. She grabbed a random t-shirt and whatever flannel shirt she could find strewn about. She pulled on a pair of dark green cargo pants. The t-shirt she had picked up was a Camp Pining Hearts one, which she was too tired to care about. She just brushed her hair briefly, brushed her teeth and picked up her bag, ready to leave until someone knocked on the door. The more she tried to ignore it, the more the people knocked, So Peridot huffed, rolling her eyes before wandering over. She was expecting some extroverted idiot to be talking about their club, or someone coming to tell her she was late for class or something, but no. Instead, she saw the beaming faces of Amethyst and Lapis. Close enough.

 

Peridot’s cheeks flushed a light pink, embarrassed at the state of her appearance and anxiety surrounding her plan being foiled. Her first response was to close the door in their faces, but alas, they saw this coming. Amethyst put her foot in the door, shoving it open to reveal a scowling Peridot. She folded her arms angrily, frustrated that she couldn’t just have her peace. 

 

“Why are you here?!” She demanded, attempting to seem intimidating and failing miserably. Lapis and Amethyst just smiled at the shorter girl, Lapis ruffling her hair teasingly.

 

“What? Not happy to see your friends?” The taller girl cooed, leaning on the door so Peridot couldn’t close it again.

Peridot blushed even more out of further embarrassment and frustration. These clods were just here to make fun of her! No one would want to be her friend this badly a day after properly meeting her! 

 

“Look, I’m not in the mood to be made fun of by you… you clods! Go find someone else to mock!” Peridot snapped back, glaring at the duo. They both looked back with confused looks on their faces, their good-natured teasing swapped for genuine confusion.

 

“Peri… Have you never had a friend before?” Amethyst asked cautiously, “A genuine one, I mean, ‘Cause… We genuinely wanna hang out with you today. We aren’t gonna mock you.” 

 

Peridot paused, relaxing ever so slightly. Her eyes widened at the thought of a real friend, someone who wouldn’t make fun of her for simply behaving as she did.  “What do you mean? You people always find the weird ones and pretend to be their friends.” Peridot adjusted her bag, avoiding eye contact, “And besides, You guys literally met me yesterday. I knocked you over!” 

“Okay I literally fall over about twelve times a day anyway, and besides, We wanna hang out with you! C’mon, would this face lie to you?” Amethyst squished her cheeks and gazed lovingly at Peridot, which almost made the grumpy blonde smile. 

 

Lapis seemed to notice the near success because she rested on Amethyst’s head with a teasing smile of her own. “See? We almost made you smile! Just hang with us today, let us prove we’re not gonna make fun.”

 

Peridot hesitated. On the one hand, she could practically feel her mother staring her down, judging her for ignoring her schedule. On the other hand, her mother wasn’t here. She was never there. Peridot was just imperfect. She was a problem for her mother. Her mother didn’t care for her, and therefore hardly knew her. 

“...Fffffine.” She muttered at last, huffing a sigh of annoyance. Lapis and Amethyst did a half-coordinated celebratory dance before grabbing her arm and dragging her out the door. Peridot barely could lock her door before she was outside, surrounded by Garnet, Pearl, Lapis, and Amethyst. 

 

“Nice. You caught her. Let’s go.” Garnet spoke, smiling gently at the nervous blonde. Various cries of cheer followed her statement, and one tentative thumbs up from Peridot. Lapis wandered over and placed a hand on her shoulder, making her jump at the sudden touch.

 

“C’mon. Pearl’s gonna sit in the front so you, me ‘n Amethyst can share the back. Garnet’s the only one I trust to drive after Pearl almost got arrested.” Lapis spoke, providing no context. Peridot, for one, could not imagine the coordinated, perfect Pearl getting arrested. Lapis just meandered beside Peridot, opening the car door for what was supposed to be the smaller girl, but Amethyst clambered in first. Lapis scowled, but Peridot just laughed a little, climbing in second. 

 

Peridot didn’t mind the middle seat much. She had Amethyst and Lapis to vaguely pay attention to, and Pearl was in charge of the music. Surprisingly, she played some alright tunes. Peridot would’ve picked video game music, but this was good too. Some–

 

“Peridot?” Pearl interrupted her thoughts with her name, posing it as a question as if she’d missed it the first time.

 

“Yes, sorry–?” Peridot mumbled, looking at the taller girl. Her cheeks flushed a pinkish red as she fidgeted with her sleeve out of awkwardness.

“I was just wondering if you’d like to choose a song? It’s your first time properly hanging out with us, so why don’t you show us your taste in music!” Pearl beamed, handing her her tropical-phonecased phone already on the music app. 

 

Peridot hesitated, but Lapis elbowed her in the ribs to make a decision. She took the phone, and with shaky hands typed in the first song that came to mind. It was her favourite song from an obscure indie game that only her fellow nerds online had heard of. She was expecting to be ridiculed when she pressed play, but instead, Amethyst drummed along to the beat on her knees, Pearl swayed a little in time with the music, and Lapis beamed, shoving Peridot lightly.

 

“Aww, You’re such a nerd, sharing your great nerd music with us.” She cooed good-naturedly, resting an arm around the blonde’s shoulders. This made Peridot blush even more, a strangled noise of frustration escaping her quietly. 

 

“I am not a–” One look from Lapis, looking pointedly from the phone still in her hand and then back at her and she changed her tune, “Okay, maybe I am a nerd.” That last part was mumbled, but it was loud enough to get a chuckle out of the four other girls. Making them laugh made her happy, it was odd. Surely this was counterproductive, admitting faults and flaws? Why was this a bonding activity? She was just proving to them she wasn’t worth having around. She didn’t fit in, and she wanted to fit in and–

 

Her thoughts were once again interrupted, this time, by Lapis pulling her into a one-armed hug. Peridot tensed, unsure of what to make of the situation. On the one hand, yes, hugs were nice and she felt secure. On the other hand, nononono she needed to get out they were going to find her flaws– 

 

Lapis ran a hand through Peridot’s hair and suddenly, she stopped shaking. She practically melted into the taller girl’s touch, leaning toward her until she realised what she was doing and sat up, mumbling a series of apologies. Lapis just smiled, switching her attention to Pearl and Garnet.

 

Part way through the journey, her legs began to ache. The roads around Beach City weren’t the smoothest, and the hard plastic and cool metal of her different quality prosthetics were rubbing. She thought about walking once they arrived, and how noticeable her limp would be. She thought about deploying invisible nerd measures, but then she remembered how well that plan had gone last time. These girls had latched onto her, and now she was under their wings.

 

By the time they’d arrived, Amethyst had somehow fallen asleep and Lapis had taken control of the music, much to the annoyance of Pearl. She huffed, beginning a lecture on what they were doing now, before Garnet immediately disregarded this plan. That got a laugh from Peridot. A laugh from her made everyone smile, though it was clear Pearl was still mildly annoyed. Lapis helped her out of the car, kicking Amethyst awake a little harsher than was probably necessary. Peridot liked watching everyone’s dynamics match and bounce, The way everyone had at least one thing in common. Amethyst and Pearl both valued good music, and Garnet and Pearl were both practically the mothers of the group, though one was more methodical planning and the other was more carefree and a tad reckless. 

 

Peridot was still trying to find her place in the group, this scruffy nerd with a limp and odd interests. She had a bond with Lapis and Amethyst already, the kind of bond where both of them seemed confused when she winced as she walked, but didn’t mention anything when she shook her head. She had a bond with Garnet in the sense that she walked beside Peridot protectively, offering an arm to lean against. She had a bond with Pearl in the sense that Pearl had offered to pair up with her in class. Overall, she had a bond forming with the group, It was sweet. She had friends. 

 

The diner they ate in was decided unanimously amongst the four Beach City residents. They had decided that Peridot simply must try the fries at this particular diner. This was, according to the group, the best place in Beach City for fries, which Peridot agreed must be accurate seeing as they had ‘fry’ in their name. Where they sat was up to whoever chose a booth first, and that decision went to Lapis. She chose a booth with comfy enough seats and a somewhat view of the ocean. On one side sat Garnet and Pearl, on the other, Peridot and Lapis, and Amethyst sat in the middle of sides in between Peridot and Garnet. It was a similar seating arrangement to the car, but Peridot didn’t mind. She’d taken a liking to the girls who’d tried to break into her apartment. 

 

“Peridot, back me up here.” Pearl muttered, pinching the bridge of her thin nose. The group had been jokingly arguing, the sides of the table divided aside from Peridot and kind of Garnet, who was now the mediator. What had they been arguing about? Which modern Kirby game was the most educational. Granted, Garnet wasn’t entirely sure on the topic, hence why she had switched to co-mediator, but Lapis and Pearl seemed rather good-naturedly heated over the topic. 

 

“Mmm, Actually, I agree with Lapis.” Peridot replied with a smug little smile, “Kirby and the Forgotten Land has messages about all sorts of things, Educational. And, it’s simply fun.”

 

Pearl scowled, rolling her bluish eyes, “Okay, but Kirby Star Allies has counting! And the same message of friendship!” 

 

“Counter argument,” Lapis interrupted, pausing to take a sip of her water, “Fun.”

 

“Adding onto Lapis!” Peridot practically stood on her seat at this point, slamming her fist onto the table as gently as a fist slam could be, “Math doesn’t always make it educational!”

 

Pearl scowled further, sinking down in her seat and muttering something about everything being unfair. Garnet and Amethyst laughed, Garnet raising Peridot’s hand in a show of who had won. 

 

Peridot kicked her feet, laughing to herself. She seemed so happy, beaming about both ranting about her interests and being around people who cared as much as her, until she noticed adults looking at her funny. She felt their cold stares, glaring at her for being so weird. Some of the glares were probably imagined, but the ones that were real made her sink down too. She kept her hands on her lap, blush creeping up her cheeks ‘till she almost cried. She was not showing weakness here. She was already a failure. Imperfect. Unworthy of love. She was not showing this to her new friends. 

 

Around her, the conversation continued. Or at least, she thought it did. In actuality, Garnet had glared at the entitled idiots who’d made their new friend feel self-conscious. Amethyst had to be held back by Lapis to stop her from doing anything rash, and Pearl was the one to actually do something. Garnet shuffled over as Amethyst was dragged to sit where Peridot had been sat. The taller girl pulled the blonde into a hug while she cried, just comforting best she could. Peridot felt like a clod. An imperfect, failure clod. She clung to the fabric of Garnet’s shirt like a child and cried until she felt bad. 

 

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be crying like this. In fact, I shouldn’t have acted so immature anyway.” Peridot murmured, wiping her eyes.

 

“Peridot, no.” Garnet rested a hand on Peridot’s shoulder, her voice stern, “Crying is okay. Those people shouldn’t have made you feel insecure.”

 

Peridot’s phone buzzed, which made her want to leave this situation even more. It was either a lecture from her mother or her alarm reminding her to study. Because she wasn’t supposed to be here. Peridot didn’t say anything more, she just attempted to scramble out of her seat but was stopped by Garnet again. Garnet was authoritative, but not in the way her mother was. She was gentle and kind, but stern. She would tell you what to do, but gently and in a way that made sense. So Peridot relaxed, letting Pearl lecture the people who had made her new friend cry. And Peridot felt wanted.

Notes:

OKAY

So this fic is inspired, but i’m also gonna go my own direction. Garnet is AroAce, There’s some subtle Pearl &. Amethyst and Lapis &. Peridot are gonna love eachother eventually. Chapters are unpredictable lmao

Discord : https://discord.gg/tRedaMttFd

Hope you liked it!!

Chapter 3: The Crystal Gems

Summary:

Peridot talks to a friend and encounters someone she didn't expect.

The next day, Peridot really had to study. If her mother saw a slip in her scores, she’d never hear the end of it. She couldn’t sacrifice her education for friends, no matter how much she wanted to. But… her mother wasn’t here. Her mother was off on some business trip or something. She was just sending her new prosthetic instead of delivering, and she always just sent messages instead of actually talking to her. She would get calls for lectures and texts and emails for smaller things. She was never her child, she was always treated as some intern who often got things wrong. She was wasting company time, and that was inexcusable. She was imperfect too, she had a defect, and to Yellow Diamond, that meant Peridot had to be perfect. And she wasn’t.

 

Peridot scrambled out of bed, slightly less exhausted than she had been the previous day. Her hair was a mess as per usual, and she really ought to clean her room, but for now, coffee. She pulled on her prosthetics, almost falling over as she stood up. She grabbed an alien tank top, a Camp-Pining Hearts button up, her jeans, and her denim jacket, the perfect combination of outfit. Adding to it, she put on her favourite alien socks and scuffed converse before brushing her teeth, grabbing her glasses and headphones, and heading out the door. 

 

She loved the cafe by the campus. Even before she’d started at Beach City College, she’d gotten coffee there every day. Her mother had made her move to Beach City for a few weeks before she began the term, which meant exploration and coffee. The barista, a teen by the name of Steven, had learned her order by now and had already had it prepared by the time she got there. Apparently, it was pretty slow-going at the cafe because Steven had taken to memorising the few regular’s orders because it gave the place some flair. And plus, Peridot loved walking in to dramatically announce “The Usual!”

 

The little bell on the door chimed as Peridot was hit with the smell of fresh coffee and cream. She loved the accompaniment scent of freshly baked goods, of which she always had to resist buying all of. She walked over to the counter, her cheaper prosthetic creaking in the quiet, smiling at the barista she knew so well. She and Steven were friends, Peridot would consider him a friend. That brought the friend count to five! As she approached, she spun around, leaning on the counter dramatically. 

 

“The Usual.” She spoke with a joking air of mystery. She looked as if she were a spy, and attempted not to laugh as Steven played along. He slid her drink along the counter towards her, replying with, “One, Usual.” as they both collapsed into laughter. 

“Morning, Peridot.” Steven spoke, wiping a tear from his eye, “You came just as I made your coffee!”

 

“Really?! I thought I was gonna get here when my coffee was cold–” Peridot muttered, “Thanks!”

 

Steven smiled in response. He was a tall teen, with a mop of dark curls that were always either styled neatly or styled messily. His dark brown eyes were never dull, and he always carried an air of energy about him. His signature symbol was a star he always put on his coffee and wore on his shirt. Peridot matched his energy, often rambling to him about the latest game or her new favourite episode of Camp Pining Hearts. He was interested in the same things as her, and it was nice to have someone to relate to, but Steven was busy a lot, and she was pretty sure he thought she didn’t have a phone. Well, she was on a confidence high.

 

“By the way,” She began, already regretting this, “Do you want my number so we can talk more when you’re not. You know. Working?”

Steven paused for a moment before answering. The confusion was clear in his expression, taking a second to take in the fact that Peridot did in fact have a phone. “Honestly, I was convinced you didn’t have a phone.” Steven laughed a little, scribbling his number down on a napkin, “Here.”

 

Peridot laughed triumphantly and slightly mockingly.  “I knew you thought I didn’t have a phone! I just don’t have much use for a phone!” Peridot smirked cheekily, a glint of mischief in her eyes. Steven shoved her playfully as she inputted his number and took her coffee. 

 

“Message me later! I’m gonna go work on a project.” Peridot chirped, balancing precariously on one leg. She stumbled backwards, attention focused on her phone as she headed back to her dorm.

 

It was raining a little now, the drizzle dampening her jacket and getting water on her glasses. She didn’t run this time–she’d learned her lesson–but she did walk fast. She fell onto her bed as soon as she got in, skewing her glasses and almost spilling her coffee. Luckily, protecting hot liquids from spilling was a skill of hers. She laughed again, kicking off her shoes and scrambling into a sitting position. She scrolled through the group chat, smiling at the way they mentioned her when she was offline for too long. They missed her! It was so odd to her, and now she had Steven’s contact too!! 

 

She sat on her bed, music playing from her phone, sipping her coffee, fully enveloped in tinkering with her unfinished project. It was just a tad broken now, a wire out of place and a bit of metal in need of replacing. She was so focused on the wiring that when a harsh, clear knock interrupted her, she almost threw what she was working on. Peridot scrambled to her feet, pausing her music and kicking a few stray items of clothing under various items of furniture as she went to make her room seem at least a little neater. She just assumed the person at the door would be Amethyst or Lapis, seeing as they had taken a liking to her, but when she opened the door with a smile, it quickly disappeared.

 

A familiar intimidating presence towered above her. 

 

Yellow Diamond.

 

Her mother was here.

 

Peridot quickly stood up straighter, shoving her phone in her pocket. Yellow Diamond, a ferocious woman with short blonde hair styled meticulously and piercing yellow eyes, was not a woman to be messed with. Her suit was immaculate, a darker shade of yellow, with diamond buttons and similarly coloured trousers. Her shoes were shined, and her hands were behind her back as she gazed at Peridot with disdain. She was a problem, and problems had to be dealt with. There could be no tarnishes on her image of perfection.

 

“Peridot.” Yellow addressed sternly, Glaring at the teen with malice, “Where were you yesterday?” Peridot swallowed, taking a few shaky steps backwards. She was nauseous. That was all she could focus on. Nausea and nerves. Her mother was here. She was never here. She only came here if Peridot had made a mistake so bad it needed to be fixed. Surely her mother couldn’t have known about the previous day? She didn’t care enough to pay attention! She just ignored her calls and sometimes responded to messages!

“Peridot. You will respond when spoken to.” Yellow snapped, taking a step toward her daughter. She let the door slam shut behind her, ignoring the way her daughter flinched, yelping from the noise. 

 

“I–” Peridot began, shaking and scrambling for words, “I was studying! Just– Just studying.”

Ah yes, Lying. It was a tactic she had picked up from years of learning that her emotions didn’t matter. If she told the truth, she’d be scolded.

 

“Hm. Studying? Away from your dorm? At a restaurant?” Yellow took her phone out of her pocket and looked at something, a glint of smugness in her gaze, “And what’s this? Messages in a chat talking about plans to ‘Hang Out’? Doesn’t seem like studying.”

 

Peridot froze. Her mother had access to her chats. And her location. At all times. Now she really was nauseous. She considered running, but Yellow Diamond was blocking the door. She couldn’t form words, only noises as she attempted to explain herself, but to no avail. Yellow Diamond wasn’t smiling, but her expression was smug, catching her daughter in a lie.

“I think,” Yellow began, glancing at her phone again, “I think you can wait to get the new prosthetic. As punishment.” Yellow’s tone couldn’t be colder if she tried, “If you struggle, well, you have your wheelchair, and now you know what happens when you lie to me. I’ll be watching. You better be studying. I expected better from you, Peridot.”

 

And with that, Yellow Diamond was gone. 

 

Peridot didn’t move. She just stood there until her legs gave way and she fell to the ground. She needed to search her apartment. She needed to search. She needed to break her phone. She needed to get a new number. She needed to make sure her mother wasn’t tracking her now, watching her struggle. 

 

Peridot was so nauseous she was sure she couldn’t stand to get to the bathroom, but she did. She had only drank half her coffee and hadn’t eaten the croissant, so expelling her breakfast wasn’t as bad. She still hated the way her body ached and the way she could barely stand. No. She deserved this. She deserved the way her body hated her. 

 

Peridot leaned on the sink for support as she brushed her teeth because she needed to be fine, her legs aching with the effort of keeping her standing. She just had to search the apartment. She had to search the apartment and then she could sleep. Except she couldn’t. She needed to get a new phone and hide the old one, probably in her bag so she could carry it to class… Her mother needed to think she had taken the warning. She would keep hanging out with her friends. She would. She was feeling rebellious, and her friends made her happy. For once, she was happy. Yellow Diamond couldn’t take her friends. 

 

The apartment was neat by the time Peridot had ridden the adrenaline high. Her projects and personal items were tracker-free, and she’d decided to clean, because if Yellow Diamond came back, she needed to seem neat. Now all she needed to do was stop crying. Wait. Crying? She was crying? Why was she crying? No. No. She deserved this. She should not be crying. She should not be crying. She deserved the punishment. She shouldn’t have made friends. What was she thinking, being rebellious? 

 

A notification made her jump. It was a message from Amethyst. 

 

Apparently the other girl had been messaging her about coming over, and because she hadn’t been responding from lack of mobility, Amethyst had taken the initiative. She was coming over, and Peridot didn’t know what to do. She just kind of sat there on her floor, tears streaming down her face. She had changed her clothes already, just into a Camp Pining-Hearts t-shirt, an alien print shirt and some joggers. She wasn’t even wearing shoes. She was too tired to care about Amethyst finding her like this. She’d probably call her weird, or abandon her, and she deserved it. 

 

When the door opened, Amethyst’s joking smile was immediately wiped away by the sight of Peridot on the ground, the apartment smelling of sick, how frantically clean it was, and the fact that Peridot looked ill. She was crying, pale and shaking, clearly in need of a hug. She didn’t even react when Amethyst hugged her, putting Peridot’s arm around her shoulders. Peridot was vaguely aware that she explained about her mother, but other than that, she only really knew what was going on when she had a new phone in her hand and a blanket around her shoulders. 

 

Amethyst had taken Peridot to her shared apartment with Lapis. It was a busy place, with paintings and posters lining the walls and piles of clothes dotted around. Lapis had immediately texted the others, demanding their presence when she saw how shaken Peridot was. Peridot had pushed the anxious need to buy the phone for herself after insisting she needed a new one, according to Amethyst, but that was the only thing she was defiant about. It was concerning when she’d blocked everyone and left the group shortly before she’d turned up, but the story made enough sense. She had been tracked, unknowingly tracked by someone Peridot refused to confirm, and the paranoia had acted. She had blocked everyone and left the group so whoever it was wouldn’t know she’d told anyone, and she’d wanted to pay for the new phone herself because.. Well, Amethyst didn’t really know. 

 

Garnet practically broken the door down when she’d arrived, wearing workout clothes and accompanied by Pearl. Pearl had apparently insisted they stop at a store to buy food and snacks for Peridot and the group was not disappointed by the selection. It was a collection of all of their favourites, paired with a few generic ones just because they didn’t really know what their new friend liked. Lapis and Amethyst had put on a movie, The Lego Movie, because Amethyst had insisted, and draped Peridot in blankets and pillows. She was now leaning against Garnet while Pearl cooked and Lapis and Amethyst sat on either side of their sad nerd friend. 

 

Once Peridot had enough energy to realise what was going on, she had already been trapped in affection. She honestly didn’t know how this group was doing this much for her. They had known her for so little time and yet here they were, making her feel loved, and wanted, and secure. She even considered taking off her prosthetics, but no. They couldn’t know how imperfect she was. Not yet. Not in front of them. She’d taken off her shoes and she technically had taken off her prosthetics, yes, but that was under the blankets. If Garnet, who was sat behind her, noticed, she didn’t say anything. 

 

Pearl walked over, smiling. Something was cooking on the stove and it smelled great. Peridot’s stomach rumbled, betraying her false nonchalance over eating. She hadn’t really had anything to eat today, and her meltdown had made her hungry. Whatever Pearl had made, she would eat. Pearl gave Garnet a look, and Garnet mouthed something, but Peridot was too comfortable to care. She didn’t know how she had managed to get friends this great. All she knew was after a few more minutes of watching the movie, Garnet tapped her on the shoulder.

 

“Peridot,” She murmured, causing the smaller girl to look up. The silliness of the girl craning her neck simply to look at her made Garnet smile. “I need to talk to you about some things, and they might be a little uncomfortable, and for that, I’m sorry.”

 

It was now that Peridot realised the others had left the apartment to do various things. She knew Lapis and Amethyst were off going to grab stuff from Peridot’s apartment, and Pearl had mentioned something about running out of an ingredient. Peridot blinked up at Garnet, unsure on how to respond.

“That's… That’s fine.” She mumbled, shuffling uncomfortably. 

Garnet rested a hand on the smaller Girl’s head, and Peridot didn’t shy away.

 

“Peridot.. What happened before Amethyst found you?” Garnet asked gently, as if trying not to spook a scared animal. She wasn’t one to ask questions, usually just using statements or facts to gather information, so these questions were another level of unusual. 

Peridot hesitated, taking a moment to consider her answer. 

“My.. My mother showed up. Unannounced.” Peridot murmured. She was suddenly aware of how embarrassing this was, sitting in another girl’s lap covered in blankets as if she were a child, but she didn’t move. She didn’t know why, but she stayed where she was.

“She..” Peridot paused again, avoiding eye contact, “She was tracking me. She.. She can read my messages. She was reading my messages. Had to get a new phone. Couldn’t deal with the thought of being tracked.”

 

Garnet tensed. She paused for a moment, staring at the wall as if it were Peridot’s mother. The sheer amount of rage she felt on the smaller girl’s behalf was indescribable. She’d known this nerd for roughly three days, but she felt as much a part of their friend group family as the other girls. 

“I’m sorry that happened, Peridot.” Garnet replied at last after a silence that worried Peridot, “No one should be tracked by their own mother. You have a new phone now, You searched your apartment, and we searched ours. Don’t worry. She won’t track you now.”
“My mother is Yellow Diamond!” Peridot blurted out without thinking, ”She always finds some way to control the situation, and of course she would want to control her imperfect daughter. I’m a mistake. I deserve this. I don’t deserve your hospitality, In fact, I should leave. I. I should go. Goodbye.”

Peridot attempted to scramble to her feet, but for the third time, she was stopped by Garnet.  This seemed like a routine by now, something Garnet had learned to expect. Peridot was prone to self-loathing and attempting to flee from situations. It was a habit from knowing when she wasn’t wanted. Being the problem in social situations and feeling threatened in social situations had given her the knowledge of when to leave.

“You don’t deserve that. You really don’t. I know you haven’t known us for long, but surely you trust us not to lie to you.” Garnet waited for Peridot to settle before asking her next question. Peridot had responded with a tentative head nod. She did trust them, and for that, Garnet was grateful. 

 

“Peridot, I need to know why you think you’re imperfect.” 

This half-question made Peridot shake her head. She tensed, unwilling to respond. How could she explain that one without revealing her flaw? She would not tell them. No no no no. That was her secret. She was going to keep it until she was comfortable to share. 

“It's okay, Peridot,” Garnet murmured, “You can tell me. I won’t judge you. None of us will.”

Peridot considered telling Garnet for a moment, weighing the pros and cons. Pros, Garnet would possibly be proud of her, and she will have told one person. Cons… Too many. Too much risk. 

“No. Not yet. Please.” The note of fear in Peridot’s voice was enough to make Garnet decide to move on. It was clear this girl just needed a friend. 

“Alright. We don’t have to talk about that.” Garnet’s voice was calm despite the rage she felt, smooth and gentle, “Last thing, You seem hungry. Pearl made soup. Her stress cooking is amazing.”

 

This note made Peridot smile, exactly what Garnet was looking for. The rest of the friend group was stood in the doorway, watching the little scene. When Peridot noticed, she blushed a little, but she didn’t try to flee. Garnet got up to help Pearl in the kitchen and Peridot simply leaned backwards. Amethyst and Lapis sat beside the nerd, Lapis armed with games and Amethyst armed with various other comfort items. Peridot loved her new friends. The Crystal Gems. 

Notes:

HER MOTHER

I loved writing this chapter lmao. I'm gonna be focusing on my other fics for a lil bit, because I have so many ideas. I wanna write a Mom Swap AU because Yellow Diamond pretending to be an Emerald is <3. Also considering having Garnet having DID :3

Discord : https://discord.gg/aAg2dyUR7k

Chapter 4: Love Like You

Summary:

Amethyst and Lapis go to get things from Peridot's apartment, Pear l gets ingredients for soup.

Meanwhile, Lapis, Pearl and Amethyst were all collectively stressed. The trio had other things to do, such as not wait outside the apartment door, but they wanted to make sure their newest friend was okay. It was a distressing situation, making a new friend who has clear as day trauma and a habit for hiding it showing up in a complete state. Lapis had an unwanted intrusive thought that they should just stop hanging out with someone who was so unstable, but no! That was horrible! She was growing fond of the nerd. She didn’t care if this is what she had to do every week, as long as she was happy. 

 

After a few moments of lingering, A text from Garnet telling them to go and get the things they needed to get instead of hanging around was enough for all of them to leave. They split up into two teams, one half to get food for soup and the other half to get items from Peridot’s room. Amethyst and Lapis walked together, their room overtaken by their friends. Amethyst seemed… Okay enough. She was good at being okay. Lapis was a frazzled mess externally, but anyone who truly knew her knew this was just what she looked like. She was an art student, it was her mood.

 

They were unsure about splitting from Pearl, the taller girl prone to cracking under pressure when alone, but she seemed alright for now. Amethyst insisted she would be fine, but her tone suggested she was simply reassuring herself. Pearl would be fine, she was capable enough with extracurriculars, classes and social hours to manage getting ingredients for soup, pasta, and bread while her friend was having a breakdown. 

 

Amethyst and Lapis linked arms as they walked, a silent understanding between them that they would do anything for Peridot. This nerd was their friend, and it didn’t matter they hadn’t known her for long, she felt like family to them all. Garnet stayed behind to comfort her, that was her job. The others had other things to be doing to show they cared, hence why Lapis and Amethyst were currently generating some pretty odd looks as they struggled with Peridot’s key. 

 

The building Peridot’s dorm was located in was fairly new, but the interior said otherwise. The walls were painted an odd yellow as per any generic building, with musty carpet and thick wooden doors. Some were decorated by the inhabitants of each individual room, but most just bore their dorm number. Peridot’s was one of these, simply a wooden door with the number 18 on the front. 

 

Though… was that tape? Something had been stuck up previously, though it had been torn down. The remains of whatever Peridot had hung up lay scrunched on the floor, slightly torn and stepped on. Lapis bent down to pick it up, unravelling it to show a carefully doodled sign reading ‘KEEP OUT’ with a few aliens and Camp Pining Hearts doodles surrounding it. It was just the kind of nerdy thing Peridot would do. Shame it got ripped down… Lapis made a mental note to stick it back up if they found tape. 

 

Peridot’s room itself was spotless. Every clothing item and project had been put away neatly, any evidence Peridot had rummaged through it being lost to her need to tidy. It made it a tad easier to find items of significance and clothing Peridot may want to change into because everything was meticulously organised. Peridot’s laptop was on her desk, her projects in her bag and her favourite clothes in a box under her bed. Everything was labelled, too. It had all been labelled previously, but nothing had been where it should've been. Now everything was. It was almost off-putting, seeing Peridot’s room so organised. 

 

They didn’t work silently. Lapis had her phone, so she played some music as they worked–just her playlist of whatever songs were stuck in her head. They had a momentary dance break to a Chappel Roan song and a momentary sing-along to a song from a Musical, but other than that, the conversation that seemed rather random consisted of whatever was on their minds. Mainly they commented on Peridot’s meticulous organisation system, but Lapis occasionally revealed her secret nerd side when she found a manga she was familiar with or a game she knew. 

 

Amethyst was in charge of raiding Peridot’s dismally empty kitchen. Amethyst was only really able to find chips and chocolates Peridot seemed fond of seeing as she had hoarded four bags. Amethyst took two and a bag of chips and shoved them into the ‘to take’ bag they had stolen from Peridot. It was just the bag she always lugged around with her, once just containing her latest project and schoolwork and now additionally containing her Camp Pining Hearts collection, her laptop, various snacks and a change of comfortable clothes. Anything else Lapis and Peridot picked up–like an oversized alien plushie on her bed–they would carry. Which yes, did mean Lapis had to carry an alien plushie across the campus, Amethyst following with one of the fluffiest blankets she had ever seen. 

 

“Yo, Lapis?” Amethyst called from where she was rummaging through a box, “What else should I grab? I think we’ve got most things. I don’t wanna like… raid her apartment or anything.”

Lapis looked up, very narrowly avoiding hitting her head on a shelf. 

“Hm? Uh, well we have clothes, her laptop, her favourite show, her projects… I think we can head back!” Lapis replied, picking up the bag and the alien plush from Peridot’s bed, “Has Garnet messaged you? I don’t wanna head back ‘till she’s said we can.”

“Uhh, Don’t think so.” Amethyst took her phone from her pocket, checking her messages before determining that Garnet hadn’t told them they could return, “Darn. We’re done here, so d’you wanna go check out that coffee place Peridot was ranting about the other day?”

Lapis shrugged, pocketing her phone again. 

“Sure. She’s always talking about how great it is.” 

 

Luckily it wasn’t raining any more, unfortunately it was still cold. Lapis and Amethyst weren’t exactly known for their appropriate fashion choices when it came to weather. The duo just had to book it down the path and along the road out of fear of freezing. It was quite a sight to see, watching Lapis and Amethyst sprint down a street, carrying various bed things and pulling jackets around their shoulders. Once they were in the warm sanctuary of the coffee shop, they could relax, Amethyst heading off to find a table and Lapis approaching the counter to order.

 

“Hi! What can I get started for y’all?” The barista, whose name tag read ‘Steven’ , asked her as she approached, smiling sympathetically, “Something warm, I’m assuming?”

“Yep. A chamomile tea and a hot chocolate, please.” Lapis glanced over at Amethyst with a weary expression, getting a thumbs-up from her companion, “Thanks.”

“Alright! Just tap there, it’s gonna be… Six dollars!” Steven chirped, sliding the card machine forward, “What’s your name for the order?”

“Damn. No wonder Peridot loves this place,” Lapis raised her eyebrows, paying with a small smile, “And it’s Lapis.”

 

Steven paused for a moment, turning around to start on their order before spinning back around.

“Wait, you know Peridot?” Steven asked, a small frown creasing his forehead.

“About yay high, blonde hair, always energetic?” Lapis replied, her smile growing, “Yeah, I know her. She really that frequent of a customer?”

“She comes in everyday she can! Did she send y’all?” Steven beamed, leaning on the counter as the conversation continued. Amethyst was growing a tad impatient, deciding to pull the fluffy blanket of Peridot’s around her shoulders in a further attempt to warm herself up.

“More or less.” Lapis walked over to where Amethyst was sat, not too far from the counter so they could conveniently continue this conversation, “We had to go grab some stuff from her apartment, and it’s too early to go back so we decided to come here. She’s always ranting about this place.”

Steven smiled, proud that he’d won over Peridot so clearly. 

“Well, let her know I’m glad she loves my coffee.” Steven spun back around to begin work on their drinks, a sing-song note in his voice, “Always glad for more customers.”

 

Lapis claimed her seat opposite Amethyst after deciding sitting on the table would be an appropriate way to continue the conversation. Amethyst had taken to texting Pearl about what she was up to, and so far, she was trying not to panic in a supermarket. She was mostly doing fine, but the occasional thought about her friend freaking out was making it harder to pick up the correct ingredients.

 

——

 

Pearl had known Peridot for three days, and she was already ready to make her signature soup for her. Currently, she was doing a rather good job at focusing on the task at hand, but one mistake, and she risked being the next to break down. No, Pearl. You’re fine. Stress cooking is your speciality. You’re almost done anyway. Your soup is amazing. It’s cooking and simmering. It’ll be perfect by the time you’re done. Just don’t cry in a supermarket.

 

Just as Pearl was growing closer to screaming at a bag of pasta, her phone rang, adding to her level of overwhelm. No issue, this was fine. She was fine. This was all completely fine.

“Hello?” Pearl chirped into the receiver, taking a deep breath before shoving a shelf of herbal tea into her cart. She wasn’t stressed.

“Pearl, this is Garnet.” Garnet replied, voice hushed and certain. Garnet was always so frustratingly calm, but it was reassuring. Garnet was calm, so Peridot must be better. “You can come home now. I’m telling you first because I know you’re less likely to make a fuss. And I value your soup.”

Pearl let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding, putting two boxes of tea back on the shelf. Okay, she could go back to her stress cooking.

“Oh, thank goodness.” Pearl breathed, chucking gently, “I’ll be there shortly, I just have to pay. See you soon, and I'm glad our new friend is doing okay!”

 

Pearl shoved her phone back into her pocket as soon as Garnet put the phone down, making a beeline for the tills. She adored her cooking time, it was pure stress, but her favourite kind of pure stress. Controlled stress. Stress, sans of any true consequence. Ah, cooking. Her comfort since she was young. Baking? Baking was a different topic entirely, but her homemade soup was a memorised, perfected craft, and she was good at it. 

 

——

 

Heading back to their apartment was a relief. They were glad to be able to give Peridot’s stuff back to her after carrying it around for the past half an hour. It was still freezing outside, unfortunate given they hadn’t spontaneously gained warmer clothes. The walk back wasn’t too bad, however. It was mainly just them shivering and making bad jokes to try to distract from their poor decision-making skills. At least they’d had their warm drinks beforehand. 

 

The campus was weirdly quiet, just a few students lingering around as the day progressed. The weather was probably deterring the desire to go outside, and granted, Lapis and Amethyst wanted to be inside as much as other people did. Luckily, it wasn’t much of a trek to their dorm. Apparently, the greatest trial of getting to their room would be actually getting inside. Pearl and Garnet were too busy with whatever they were doing to hear Amethyst’s harsh door kick, so Lapis was left to try to unlock a door with her arms full. 

 

Being greeted by the warmth of their room and the smells of cooking was a great feeling to fall through a doorway to. Amethyst and Lapis were definitely overexaggerating their exhaustion, collapsing dramatically onto the bed beside Garnet. Peridot was sitting on the floor now, still swathed in blankets and holding a notepad. She was furiously writing ideas down, half watching the movie still playing as she did so. She was in her own zone, focused on the projects that occupied her thoughts. Peridot only looked up when Amethyst and Lapis approached, making her smile.

 

Lapis gave Garnet a questioning thumbs-up, being met with a reassuring thumbs up in turn. Lapis believed it. Things seemed calmer now. Peridot seemed happier. Garnet had worked her magic once again. Things weren’t going to be magically fixed, but for now, this moment was peaceful. It was nice, having all five people in one room. Pearl was calmer now, leaning against the counter as bread baked. Amethyst had settled next to Peridot and was stealing snacks whilst Peridot was none the wiser. Garnet was still sitting on the bed behind Peridot, and Peridot was content on the floor. Lapis had pulled a stray blanket around her shoulders, melting into it after the harshness of outside weather. All in all, the group was rather cosy in this small apartment. It was their friend group and they were content. 

 

Peridot paused her writing again to claw open her bag Amethyst had so unceremoniously dumped nearby. It was filled to the brim with her belongings, including–but not limited to–her entire CPH collection, her latest discarded project, her laptop, and her all-time favourite sweater. Last she had checked, it had been stuffed in a box under her bed for safe-keeping.… Hopefully Amethyst hadn’t seen the broken prosthetic near it. If she had, she wasn’t mentioning it. 

 

“Amethyst, I love you.” Peridot stated, resisting the urge to squeal as she hugged Amethyst for the socially appropriate number of seconds. This gesture was purely Platonic, a display of gratitude for the recovery of precious personal items. It was soon followed by a beaming Peridot picking up her notebook to resume her scribbling. 

 

“P-dot, what are you writing?” Amethyst inquired, leaning on Peridot’s shoulder to get a better look at her notepad. To Amethyst, the scribbled notes were just that, scribbled nonsense. To Peridot? These notes were all of her ideas on one page. It made no sense and probably wouldn’t work, but the thoughts were there. The intention was there. The motivation to actually turn these notes into something was there, and that was rare. 

 

“Don’t bother asking her. She’s so far into her notes that–” Garnet was abruptly cut off by an excited Peridot, slamming her notebook on the ground a tad harder than she had intended.

 

“I’m glad you asked!” Peridot chirped, beaming ear to ear. She launched into a rant, flipping through pages of her book and pointing out different important sketches. She was completely lost in her ramble, and it was such a happy sight.

 

“--She’ll just rant at you.” Garnet finished her light-hearted warning just as Peridot got a notification. Instead of pausing to check it like she always did, she pressed on, uncaring if the notification was her mother, a school thing, or even Steven! She just kept talking about her interest, because that’s what she wanted to care about. For this moment, her mother couldn’t control her life. She was Peridot Diamond, and she had friends now. 

Notes:

I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK ALMOST TWO MONTHS TO RELEASE LMAO. Ough I've been so busy with other fics that this one just had to sit on the shelf. It's a long fic, so it takes a lot of my mental energy to write. I've been focusing on stuff like my geodes AU because I have that planned out, but fics like this I just wing.

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