Glittering Shadows

Chapter Eight

I was startled, to say the least, when I took notice of the human child who spotted me – somehow, I felt a bit wary. As unsure as I was on how to assess my first contact with the human in front of me, my gaze was still locked with the gem on his belly.

The gemstone itself was not what drew my attention – Rather, he seemed to have a bright sparkle within his gaze when he saw my hands tend to healing. My Pearl was staring in pure curiosity at the boy, but I was not sure what to make of it.

"My Diamond, do you see that gem on the child's belly? It looks like a Quartz."

That thought was directed towards me when I heard her speak, but it made my mind drift to where this Quartz could be familiar — though I did not have the foggiest clue about it.

I found my gaze drifting back towards the human boy who was speaking excitedly to Pearl and myself. I did not answer her just yet, shifting my focus onto the child who was coming to approach us in a friendly manner.

"Were you healing her?" He asked, referring to the healing procedure he'd caught a glimpse of earlier.

I froze at his question, unsure whether it was safe to answer it or not.

The reminder that this boy was associated with the ones I had previously seen on the Moon Base made me skeptical of answering.

"What should we do?" Pearl communicated with me once more.

I looked to her side, seeing a hint of a frown take over the gentle expression she often carried.

"Let us be careful of the information we direct at him." I ordered, looking back at the boy afterwards.

"Yes." I replied, nodding. "I was healing my Pearl."

His gaze seemed to brighten with curiosity as he inspected both me and my companion, mostly focusing his attention on our gemstones as well as on my towering height — even as I knelt down next to my Pearl.

"Are you a Diamond?" He asked, his eyes wide with what appeared to be both alarm and awe.

At that question, I smiled – Though I was not often referred to as such, having him call me that way made for a strange, yet warm feeling to take over my thoughts.

He recognized me as a Gem, rather than just someone that needed to be kept away from others.

"I am." I replied, afterwards looking at my Pearl and making a gesture for her to take a step forward, not wanting her to be left behind. "And this is my friend: Pearl."

I waited until she shook hands with him, a hint of a smile present on her face as she witnessed the boy smile brightly at her.

"The name's Steven!" He introduced, letting go of her hand as he then proceeded to extend it out to me. "Nice to meet you both."

I accepted his handshake, waiting until he let go first before speaking up.

"Are you, perhaps, one of the Crystal Gems?" I asked, facing with him. "I find your gem to be rather. . . familiar, in a sense."

"Yeah!" He replied, eagerness present in his tone. "Did you just just arrive here today? I can show you around if you want!"

"That would be lovely." I spoke, taking in once more the atmosphere of the Earth as well as of Steven's presence. "Frankly, I am. . . quite lost. I do not know what I should do from here on."

"Don't worry about that!" Steven assured, placing his balled hands over his waist, holding a confident – if not encouraging – pose. "I'll teach you all there is about Earth – You'll get used to it in no time at all!"

Just as I was about to speak up, the sound of various footsteps alarmed my ears. Frantically, I looked towards the noise, fearing it could most likely be the Jasper I had hidden away from during my journey here.

As I focused my eyes on that location, I felt relieved – if only a little – to learn that I'd been wrong.

What did made me worry was seeing all the Crystal Gems – except for the Peridot – gathered together, looking at us from a distance.

Before I could take any sort of action, my Pearl was already standing in front of me, her twin swords summoned out as she held her stance firm – waiting in case any of them decided to threaten or attack us.