gave him the whole thorn thing, he holds Rose very dear to him more than ever, unlike Pink, he embodies the Spring and change rather than her playful princess esq nature. He absolutely hates this outfit though. Good thing it's only for public appearance.
Excited to announce my very of Steven Universe AU Bleeding Heart!!
A quick overview:
What if Steven kissed ass more than ever before?
Nonono but I wanted to see a Steven with a closer relationship to Dr.Maheswaren and how that would shape how he views his own family and mother, seeing "what he could have" but doesn't.
I'm going to go more into Steven rehabilitating the Universe so post main show but before movie, maybe he still thinks he has to atone for his mother 👀
This has been brewing for a minute so expect lore and shit soon!
Thinking about the episode where Steven explains thunder to peridot and ohhhh I bet Steven misses weather so bad, he deserves to sit by a window while it’s raining with a good book and some tea or cocoa so bad poor guy
Steven misses the sunlight the most. Homeworld's 'sun' isn't like anything on Earth. It emits only light, and no warmth. He misses being warm, and the rushing waves on the beach.
His colonies can only fill the hole a little, but nothing is like Earth, like home.
THIS WAS SURPRISINGLY HARD but i hope you guys enjoy it!
Early on, Steven didn't think much of his appearance, nonetheless his teeth. He never noticed the gap in the front, and how some curled forward and crowded each other. He didn't glance twice at his smile.
At least, not until recently.
Now 16, his body began to glow a striking and bright pink when his emotions became unstable. His teeth grit and snarled with anger, and to some, He was simply unsightly. White's Pearl seemed to glare at him the most, it was as if she'd become disgusted with him. It only added fuel to a dysphoric fire, even his teeth couldn't get it together. Steven couldn't help but notice how everyone looked at him, it was obvious how his figure was 'too stocky' for that of a Diamond. Hideous. Embarrassing. It affected him more than he could bear. He tried so often to fix himself to no avail, and at some point, he came to terms with himself, to an extent.
Late at night, Steven was called to the Human Zoo. He hadn't been there since bringing his Dad home so many years ago, and oh how he missed him. Walking down the halls filled his mind with memories on how they escaped that day, and how relieved he was to go home. He quickly pushed the memory away, for his own sake, shaking it off.
He found himself stepping into a secluded room, the sharp scent of sterile material made his nose curl. He was greeted by two Gems quick to salute to him, both Peridots to be precise. Their cool tone indicated they were from Blue's court. He somewhat remembered there were 'medical personnel' on the ship incase of emergency, but he'd never really met them before this. All he could offer was a small smile and wave. He stood with his hands at his side before a familiar voice rung behind him, making him flinch like that of a small child.
"Hello Starlight! Apologies for disrupting your 'sleep schedule', but as you can see, we need to discuss something very important."
White's Pearl dragged herself past him, her blank smile and dark eyes seemed to bring the entire room into silence. The Peridots' didn't plan on breaking that silence, one shut the door, and the other opened a screen.
Steven's eyes darted around the room before fixating on the slender Pearl facing him, his brows furrowed into his response, "It's...fine. What's going on?"
White's Pearl brought her hands together, speaking without hesitation, "Don't be so rash. We just need to talk, that's all. Have a seat."
She stood to the side, revealing a chair. There wasn't anything special about it, past the very obvious restraints attracted to it. Steven hesitated, "What do you mean? What's with the chair?" He backed up towards the door, pressing his back against it in a sense of false security.
White's Pearl brought her hand up to mouth, almost shocked at his tone, "Now now, Starlight. Resistance is futile. It's either this, or the tower. Your choice."
Steven's stomach turned at the mention of the tower, just thinking about it made him horribly anxious. With an eventual sigh, he sat down in the chair. It felt hard, no way to sit comfortably.
Steven looked up remorsefully, stammering as he tried to find the right words to say, "Is this about the outburst at the ball? If so, I'm really sorry. I-I don't know what came over me-"
White's Pearl interrupted, walking in front of him, "Hush now. That's exactly what I'd like to talk about."
With a snap of her fingers, the two Peridots quickly walked to the boy and began to wrap the restraints on his wrists and chest. Not that they would hold him, no, but if it gave them security, he'd stay put for their sake. It couldn't be worse than the tower, at least, that's what he thought. He didn't quite know what he was in for.
Steven shifted, trying to make himself comfortable, which felt impossible. He looked around the sterile environment in silent awe, it reminded him of something he'd remembered Connie spoke about in in a tv show, his mind wandering to her telling him about a girl trapped in a lab full of scary equipment and evil scientists who experimented on her for the sake of her magical powers. He remembered how much it confused him, how could people could be that way? It felt like a cruel irony at this point, or perhaps a callous warning.
He refocused his gaze to the Peridots' who whispered amongst each other, when suddenly, his eyes were blinded by a green beam of light. His face contorted and he drew his head back into the headrest of the chair, he shut his eyes tightly trying to readjust his vision. Once his sight returned, he noticed the two were staring at a hard light screen he couldn't quite make out.
"What is that? What's going on?"
The two turned to him, both silent as White's pearl spoke up between them, "Your last outburst, do you remember what exactly made you frustrated? So frustrated you decided to destroy half of the ballroom?"
This was a stupid question. Of course he knew, "I guess..."
He hesitated, but continued, his voice full of confliction, "My appearance. Nobody sees me as a Diamond, not that I really want to be, b-but I just wish they'd see me like them. Everyone talks about me, about how I look, and I just get so upset. It isn't fair, I-I can't change how I look. It's not like anything I tried would...stick." Steven trailed off, a soft pink glow emitting from his cheeks as he grit his teeth. His ever so unsightly teeth. He hated the way he felt about his appearance, but it was true. Constant pressure and bullying from the Gems meant to respect him didn't quite help.
White's pearl nodded, walking up to him, "Well, what if I told you that I could help with that? Starting with those teeth of yours. How...hideous they are."
Steven felt shocked. Out of everything, his teeth? He hadn't even thought about his teeth. He'd seen Gems with tooth gaps or misplaced teeth before, but it was never something he'd look for. That, and the persistent thought that he hadn't seen a toothbrush in almost 3 years, the idea was uncanny.
He tilted his head, unsettled. "Huh? What's wrong with my teeth?"
"Oh, what isn't wrong with them is the better question." White's Pearl retorted in disgust. Flipping the screen to face him revealed an X-Ray. He didn't even know Homeworld knew what a X-Ray was. Nonetheless, the scan showed his teeth, along with multiple circles and gem glyph written alongside them.
Steven cocked his head to the side, squinting as he tried to read it, but it only made him confused. He looked up with a small grin, "Well, that isn't very helpful. I-I don't get it." He chuckled nervously. There's no way, right?
White's Pearl hummed her response, her smile growing ever wide, "We're going to fix your teeth, Starlight! Isn't that exciting?" She tapped the screen slowly, things began to fall into place. "We need to...break a few! Remove a couple, that's all! It's a VERY simple procedure."
Steven's eyes grew wide with horror, break his teeth?! He felt like he could throw up, his stomach tying itself into knots. Why would they need to do THAT?! He shook his head, his lip trembling.
"W-What?"
One of the peridot's brought over a tray of medical equipment, setting it on a table beside him. To him, everything looked sharp, way too unnerving. The pit in his stomach grew as his heart began to race, he felt like he could vomit. Suddenly, a sharp pain coursed through his neck, forcing him to look up, finding the other Peridot holding a syringe. What did they inject him with? Why was she holding that? He began to shift and struggle in the restraints, now finding it difficult to move. It was as if his entire body suddenly wanted to collapse into itself. He kicked his legs aimlessly, shaking his head while he pulled on his restraints, "N-No!! W-Wait, wait wait!!-"
His pleas were interrupted as the two Peridot's began to force his jaw open, the cold sensation of metal gripping the corners of his mouth only put more fear into him. His bare teeth were exposed, his body felt tired, but not enough to let him sleep. Stress pooled into his sinuses, making blood trickle down his nose and into his gums, only making his whimpers and cries louder as he continued to plea with the two. All to no avail, it didn't matter how he felt. Not to the Peridots, not to White, not to anyone. The chair was readjusted, slightly tilted back, exposing him to the bright light above him.
White's pearl walked over, her grin stretched ear to ear, almost to taunt him. "You'll have a perfect smile in no time!" She stood up straight, eerily so as she walked to the door. "I'll check in on you later Starlight."
Once that door shut, Steven found himself unable to move completely. His voice growing ever tired of pleading with the Peridots' above him. All he could do was close his eyes, and bear the inevitable.
It hurt. Everything. Everything hurt. The feeling of his teeth breaking, how it felt as they were pulled out of his mouth was indescribable. His face felt like it was tearing itself apart. His jaw could've exploded from the pain. Tears stained his face, mixing with blood and spit that ran down his chin. He breathed in sharply, exasperated and exhausted. The Peridots' were successful, but two's words were drowned out by the ringing in his ears as his chair was readjusted to sit upright. His head hung downward, blood fell onto his lap as he trembled horribly. He was lucky he hadn't eaten anything, he wouldn't have kept it down.
One of the Peridots grabbed his jaw, lifting his head carelessly, looking back at the X-Ray before nodding, letting his head drop back down without any sympathy. Fillings, realignments, they'd done it all to give him a flawless smile. Straight teeth, sharp canines, all rounding into a pearly white smile. No more gap to whistle through, everything was way too close, closed in on each other. It was as if the last bit of innocence he had left itself was taken.
White's Pearl entered the room, her voice breaking the silent sterile environment, "Oh, you look marvelous! What a good job our Peridots did, don't you agree?" She reached her hand to grab him by his scalp, lifting his head. Her smile was irritating, infuriating, yet, Steven stared at her with no energy to give. A broken sob escaped his tired body as a response, blood and spit ran down his chin. The Pearl's grip hardened, her face contorted into a blank stare, "Disobey again, and I won't be so forgiving. Do you understand me Starlight?"
Steven couldn't move, huffing softly. He couldn't manage a response, bruises forming around the corners of his mouth in a crude form of protest. White's Pearl continued to stare, shaking his head harshly as she waited for him to answer. "Well? I need a response, Pink." She continued to pull his hair, only making him break out into more weak sobs.
What insolence, disrespect. His arrogance knew no bounds.
She dropped his head and walked to the Peridots. He couldn't keep his eyes open, succumbing to the restlessness he felt.
The next thing he knew, he was being forced up, unable to move his feet as they dragged behind him. He looked ahead, trying to keep his eyes open as the pain echoed through his body. He didn't know who or what had him, all he knew was that he was unable to lift his head without risking the pain growing worse. He eventually forced his eyes up, realizing where they were headed.
'No, oh god no' rung through his head. 'Anywhere but here.'
Approaching the tower, he tried to squirm and free himself. He didn't want to be thrown into the darkness, he couldn't handle it, especially now. He tried to plead, but his face was too swollen to make anything legible out. Not that whoever had him cared.
He was thrown inside, his head hit the cold ground making the pain in his face course through the rest of his body. He let out a pained scream as the door slammed shut. Who knew when he'd be let back out, if he'd ever be let out. He'd spent weeks in there before, rotting away. He couldn't understand why, why they'd do this to him now. He stayed like they asked, he did the work. Yet, in all of this, he found himself in the tower more often than he'd liked.
He held his head and began to sob loudly, he couldn't do this, he couldn't. His pleas would be ignored, like always. His sobs echoed through the tower's walls. He sobbed for his dad, oh how he missed his dad, but he knew nobody was coming. Nobody would come for him. A disgusting, broken mess, slobbering and bleeding on the cold floor like a child.
