Friend or Foe?

The Question

Steven sat up in his bed. It was another day at home. The sun shined through the windows and through his small house. He breathed peacefully as he rose from his slumber to start his day.

He knew that today was the day. He ran all around his home as he excitedly made breakfast, got dressed, ate, and brushed his teeth. In no time he was out of his house and was finall ready to ask his family the big question.

He ran out of his house and took in the fresh morning air as it ran through his hair. He was so excited and happy that he closed his eyes for only one second and ran into something as hard as a rock. Steven fell back in shocked surprise and opened his eyes slowly.

He looked up to see a giant gem, bright orange with darker stripes on its skin. It had long beige hair that reach all the way down to its ankles, muscles bigger than any other gem seen, and yellow eyes brighter than glowing embers. The gem Steven was facing was Jasper, a powerful quartz general, more powerful than any other.

"Steven, what are you doing up so early?" Jasper asked the young boy as she helped him back onto his feet.

"Well, I was actually looking for you guys," Steven said with great anticipation.

"Why were you looking for us? You trying to get into more trouble with the Diamonds?" Jasper said teasingly as she turned around to continue her work.

"No. I just wanted to ask you guys a question. One I've been meaning to ask for a while now," Steven said in a slightly weaker tone.

Jasper turned around and looked at Steven. She could tell that something was defiantely wrong with the young gem. She knelt down next to Steven to see what was troubling him.

"Steven, don't try to hide how you feel from me," Jasper said as caringly as possible. "You know you can ask me anything."

Steven looked up at Jasper with pleading eyes.

Steven and Jasper had always been close as Steven was growing up. Despite the fact she could get overprotective at times, Steven still loved her like a mother.

"Well, I wanted to know," Steven paused for a second. He worried about Jasper's reaction to his question. He wondered if it would send the wrong message.

"Come on, Steven. Just ask me. I promise I won't get mad, if that's what you're thinking," Jasper convinced Steven.

While Steven was growing up, Jasper has always worried that she wouldn't be any good for the young boy. She worried that he would not like her because of her appearance. But from the first time Steven met her, they had a bond that just couldn't be broken. So whenever Steven would try to keep something from her, she would always figure it out.

"My mom," Steven mumbled.

"What was that, Steven?" Jasper asked curiously.

"Could you tell me about... my mom?" Steven asked slightly nervous.

"Why do you wan to know about her?" Jasper asked with slight panic in her voice.

"Jasper, I'm thirteen now. I still bearly know anything about my mom at all. I know you guys want to protect me, but I feel like I should know," Steven said hoping Jasper wouldn't bail out of it.

"Well, your Mom was..." Jasper trailed off. She looked over at Steven and pondered on what to say.

"My Mom was what?" Steven asked getting a little anxious.

"Maybe you'd be better off asking the Pearls, or Peridot, or Greg," she said getting more nervous by the second.

Steven looked down for a second. "What am I doing?" he thought to himself. "If Jasper doesn't have the courage to tell me, who will?"

He looked up at Jasper with caring eyes.

"It's okay, Jasper. I can go ask someone else," Steven said trying to hide his disappointment.

Jasper got got up and looked down at Steven.

"One more thing before you go," Jasper said.

"What is it?" Steven asked.

"Just stay out of trouble today, okay?" Jasper said as she rustled Steven's hair.

"Okay, I promise," Steven said with a little giggle.

"Okay, well, I have to get back to my mission. See you later little man," Jasper said as she started to walk away.

"See you later, Jasper," Steven called waving her goodbye.

Steven just stood there for a second. He thought carefully about who to try next. First he thought of his Dad, but Steven remembered how emotional Greg got when talking about Steven's Mom. He considered going to Peridot. After all, she was smart and knew about almost every gem and everything on the planet. Steven started to run for the data base where Peridot worked.