Steven Alternativerse

Just One More Tape (Maximum Capacity)

On the night of New Years Eve, Greg and Amethyst sit in a storage unit as the VHS tape in the player stops rolling, causing the screen to flash white. Outside, fireworks are being set off to explode in the sky, its boom resonating just loud enough for Greg to catch it.

Greg sits up, glaring at the ceiling. "What's that?" His eyes suddenly bulge as the realization hits him. "I'm missing the fireworks! It's past midnight!" Greg abruptly gets up as Amethyst narrows her eyes, smirking. "How did I get so sucked into this show again?! It's like everything else just disappears!"

Greg groans as he starts to walk away from the distraction that he has been caught up in since the previous day. Amethyst grasps his sleeve. "Whoa whoa. Don't go. We're having a really good time." Amethyst lightly pushes Greg as she pulls up another VHS tape. "Here look. I've got the two part Hawaii special."

Amethyst tosses the box as Greg frowns. "But--Steven really wanted me to do New Years." Amethyst shrugs. "He'll be fine. He's Steven. He's tough." Greg counters her. "I wanted to be there!" Amethyst presses her hands against his chest. "Here here. It would've been like this."

Amethyst shapeshifts into Steven, imitating a false reaction. "Whoa! Fireworks!" She laughs. "Hey, dad, come on! Now let's watch some Li'l Butler!" Greg snaps out of his gape to glare at her. "Amethyst, you know how I feel about shapeshifting."

Amethyst glares back, blushing. "Geez! Sorry! I was just trying to cheer you up." Amethyst morphs into her own color coded version of Greg, mocking him as she twists a lock of her hair. "Oh that's right! I forgot you're SO sensitive!" Greg pushes himself to resist, taking a step back as he balls his hands into fists.

"I know you like making me uncomfortable, but it's not funny. I can't stay here and humor you. I have to be there for my son!" Amethyst leans back as her eyes widen. She morphs back to her original self, clenching her teeth. "Well what about me, huh?" She jabs a thumb to her chest, acknowledging herself.

"I had someone who was always there for me until she started hanging out with YOU!" She directs a trembling finger towards Greg who immediately brings his guard up. "Don't do this, Amethyst! Seriously!" Amethyst huffs. "I bet you'd stay for her!" Greg clenches his teeth. "You wouldn't!"

Amethyst chuckles. "What? Do this?" Amethyst shapeshifts into Greg's deceased love as Steven enters the storage unit. Greg immediately turns around, pressing his hands to his ears as he bends his head down. "Hey, Greg! Turn around! Check it out!" Steven's remains stiff as Amethyst giggles.

Greg's voice strains as his eyes squint. "I know you're doing it! I want to be friends again! I really do! But I can't let you do this to me again!" Steven rushes and leaps onto the couch, extending his arms out. "Stop!" Amethyst whips her body towards him and Steven's eyes bulge. Greg stops the tape as Amethyst morphs back into herself.

Steven glares at her as she gapes at him. "What are you doing to my dad?!" Amethyst bites her lip as Steven continues to attack her. "My dad was supposed to be with me, Garnet and Pearl at the fireworks--and so were you! But you kept him here to watch Li'l Butler with you instead!"

Amethyst reproaches him as she curls her fingers into fists. "Well, what's wrong with that! Li'l Butler is a great show and you don't get that because Pearl and Garnet won't let you watch TV! Maybe if we didn't ground you, we wouldn't be dealing with this right now, would we?!"

Steven scoffs. "That's not the point! What I'm saying is that I know you want things to be like how they were before, but they can't! You want to keep putting all of this off because it means a lot to you. But you have to! You have to let it go-!"

Amethyst rushes to the VHS player and jabs the play button to resume the tape. She recollect herself, turning to Greg. "Greg, let's just--calm down now. Let's watch one more tape and then we'll be done with it for good." Steven leaps off the couch and he rushes up to the TV.

"Dad, don't do it! She wants you to stay here, but you can't do that! You have a car wash and a son that needs you on New Years! This has to stop!" Amethyst turns to Steven, flashing a glare. "We're only having a good time! You don't need to spoil all of this now!" Steven's lips quiver. "Amethyst, this can't go on like this!"

Amethyst casts her eyes down for a moment before bringing them back up, letting up on her glare a bit. "Okay, okay. We'll watch one more tape, and that'll be it. We'll never watch another one ever again after this. Just leave us alone for the Hawaii special. I swear, we'll be back tomorrow like all of this never happened."

Steven grits his teeth, slowly turning to Greg. "Dad, please." Greg looks from Steven--to the tape--and back to his son once more, sighing. "Alright. One more tape." Steven widens his eyes, gawking as Amethyst smiles. "Let's do it!" Steven growls as he narrows his eyes. "Okay! You've left me no choice! I'm getting the Gems!"

Amethyst watches Steven rush out of the storage unit before she looks back at Greg. "Uh, Greg, I'll be with you in a bit. I gotta go do something." Greg nods without looking at her. "Okay, Amethyst." Amethyst steps outside, folding her arms. She listens to the last round of fireworks go off as watches a blue one explode in the starry night sky.

She turns back to the storage unit, her eyes drooping. She steps up to the entrance of the storage unit and she looks up to see the handle attached to the door. Her gem glows with her right hand which stretches out towards the handle.

She grips it and she starts to pull it down. She listens to the garage door bang and clang as it crashes down towards the cement. She holds it up just enough to allow her to crawl in. She passes the threshold and she turns around to hold the door up from the bottom with the other hand.

She grunts as she tugs on the handle. She squints her eyes shut and she clenched her teeth as the handle breaks off from the door bit by bit until it snaps itself off. She tosses it inside and she holds the door up as she takes one last look at the world outside the storage unit. She bends down, allowing her hair to cover her eyes as she lets go of the door, allowing it to crash down one final time.

Steven, Pearl and Garnet rush up to the door a few moments too late, panting heavily. Steven gasps, noticing the missing handle on the door. "Oh no! Dad! Amethyst!" He bangs on the door, clenching his teeth as tears slip down his cheeks. "We're too late!"

He sobs as Pearl steps up to him to put a hand on his shoulder, as Garnet facepalms "I should've known this would happen, but I didn't think it was possible!" Pearl scoffs as she extends her hand out to the door. "Great! Now instead of days, they will be in there forever!"

Pearl puts two fingers to get chin, gasping. "That is unless-!" Steven tugs on her sweater. "Unless what!" Pearl's gem glows. "We can bust down the door!" Pearl gets up, her hand slipping from Steven's shoulder. She whips her spear out of her gem and she starts piercing the door.

Each pierce caused no more than a small dent on the door. Garnet steps in. "Allow me!" Her hands flash into guantlets. She pounds at the door a few times, but nothing happened. She wipes a guantlet across her forehead. "It--didn't work." Steven collapses on his knees as Pearl catches him. "Steven!" Steven sobs into Pearl's sweater.

A tear slips out of Garnet's visor as she turns away from the door, sniffling. "Unbelievable! We leave those two alone for a couple days! Now we're never getting them back!" Steven releases a heavy sigh as he looks back at the door. "Oh dad." He sniffles as he muffles through Pearl's sweater. "Oh Amethyst!" He closes his eyes as the last firework goes off for the night.