Disclaimer: I don't own Steven Universe!

Title: The First Five Days

Summary: (AU). Lapis regenerates in Steven's bathroom; the official main redemption hub. The waters been cut, so she has no weapons. Jasper is... classified. And her only company is her guard, an injured human girl with a sword by her side.

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DarkHorseBlueSky- Gotta love the Amedot. =) I love all the ships, really. All of them. Amedot, Pearlmethyst; they're both cute.

fulgurite- Sorry, friend. 'Tis the end of this journey.

Lazy Watermellon- Chill Amethyst for the win. =) Steven and Lapis don't actually meet up here; that's left up to your imagination.

Gemini Artemis- Exactly. Not to mention that Amethyst is a soldier gem, but, unlike the other soldiers, she's compact and not likely to just randomly hurt somebody, so Peridot doesn't see her as a personal threat. She knew she'd messed up after Steven brought it up in 'Too Far', but never once did she show concern of bodily harm.

loosecat56- Yeah, but the bathroom is where Peridot started out- who could possibly going through a redemption arc- and the trend is continuing. Don't doubt the magc of the bathroom, but don't doubt the stubbornness of Jasper, either. It's hard to tell.

loosecat56- Update I have!

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The first thing Connie does is devour half of the pantry, chugging glasses of water inbetween bites. The belly ache to end all belly ache sets in not much later, but at this point she could care less. Amethyst whoops and cheers her on like it's an Olympic event.

Then came the nap. She almost forgoes it, but Amethyst volunteers to make sure their captive doesn't kill anyone in her sleep, and she's too tired to complain. Peridot, who self-consciously tip-toes across the room to sit next to her a few minutes after she lays down, will keep both of them on track.

It's dark out when she wakes up. Amethyst reports no changes- although her face tells Connie otherwise- and shoos her off to see her family. She'd already visited earlier for new bandages and professional stitching- also, to tell them she hadn't died-, but a shower and home cooked dinner is too good to ignore. Her mother does her best to be supportive, even while she's obviously freaking out for the duration of stitching up her wounds. Connie makes sure to give both her parents a hug on the way out the door. The story is still a bit too recent to tell.

She passes Steven on the way. No news, but they've certainly narrowed things down- and are those bandages? Connie reassures him that the wounds are minor, even though they really aren't, before taking off. Running through Beach City at night is a lot less scary than some might expect it to be. It's soothing more than anything else.

Amethyst has taken her spot on the couch and is snoring loudly. Peridot sits by her side on the floor, fiddling with some wires. She'll be back to proper height soon enough, or so she suspects, remembering the bone-chilled look of horror on her face from the day before.

"I don't envy your position, knight." She says as she passes, as a sort of greeting.

"Neither do I."

"We both agree that any sounds of violence are to be ignored and go unreported." She gestures to herself and the sleeping purple gem. "I believe the proper Earth saying here is... 'have at it'?"

"That's the one." She agrees with a chuckle. "I'll keep that in mind."

She tries, in her own way. Connie gives her that much.

"It's... Connie, right?"

Connie stares at her a long moment, trying to decipher how she knew something she'd never told her, no doubt, before nodding. "Yes."

"Okay." She pauses. "The temps told me."

"Hmm." She glances at the wall. Lapis eyes the bandages on her arm and ankle; how long does it take for a human heal, anyway? Too long, or so it seemed. What about the ones she couldn't see? Were they still there?

"Are those going to... I don't know... that human thing where the color changes?"

She furrows her brow thoughtfully. "You mean scar?"

"I don't know. Maybe?"

Connie stretches out her right shoulder, looking proud of the wounds underneath the white wraps. "Probably. But it's not anything I didn't expect, or can't cover up."

"You look like you don't want to cover them up." She muses, eyeing the solidness of her stance and the pride in the way she held herself.

Connie shrugs. "All warriors have scars of one sort or another. I'm no different."

Lapis nodded. It's strange to see the girl at full strength. Before, where she'd been quiet and sullen, now she was talkative and happy. Her eyes shone with alertness. At first she'd seemed so still, as though to conserve energy, but the problem has obviously passed. She looked like it was taking all her willpower not to run and jump around. Instead she kept her gaze straight ahead, fingers twitching. Lapis wonders if she's fighting off the urge to practice her sword.

"How long has Peridot been here?"

Connie pauses. "A while? I'm not sure. I wasn't around when she first showed up." She doesn't elaborate.

"And she... tolerates you? All of you?"

"She doesn't mind my humanly presence, if that's what you mean. She just see me as a low-ranking guard. She also tends to bump heads with Garnet over fusion, but otherwise she's a neutral party."

Lapis blinks at her. It was hard to imagine Peridot being a neutral anything.

"She learning." She says finally, answering the unspoken question. "Slowly, but still."

"Or she's pretending."

"Believe what you want to believe." Connie answers. "It's not my job to make you change your mind."

Lapis paused. "What is your job, anyway?"

"I told you- I'm your guard."

"But that's not your placement." Lapis knows just enough about Earth to know that humans aren't created for just one specific purpose. Connie would do more with her short existence than follow her around and break mirrors. "Peridot called you a knight."

Connie stares at her. "You spoke to Peridot?"

Lapis levels her a look, but doesn't answer. Connie sighs. "Yes, I'm a knight. My job is to protect the people I care about- my mentor- master, whatever-, my family, my liege, my friends. I fight for them; and, if necessary, I die for them."

"But you still take their orders." She points out. She certainly doesn't have a close enough relationship with her to fight to the death in order to keep her safe. "Even if they're not the right ones."

"Of course. Anything to do my part- no matter how small that part actually is."

"So you're a warrior... and a protector?" That was two completely different jobs classification; gems who held up the metaphorical walls and the ones who tore up the battlefield in fits of rage. Of course, this isn't about anger; Connie didn't trust a single hair on her head, but she hadn't taken her head off for it.

"You can be both." She agrees, drawing her sword in demonstration. It shines in the fluorescent lighting. "In most cases, you have to be."

Lapis slowly shakes her head. "Humans are weird."

That draws a laugh out of her. "So I've heard."

She's a bit amazed by her loyalty. She's only Steven's age- far from mature- and she's already deeply committed to protect them all. There's no double-cross or traitorous thoughts about rebellions or assassinations lurking just below the surface; just a still, calm outlook on life. If it's to protect them, she'll do it; death is just a pesky afterthought.

"Is Steven your liege?" She asks. She's heard the term before, but had thought it was in disuse.

Connie stiffens slightly. "He is." She says quietly. "But, more importantly, he's my friend."

Lapis opens her mouth to say more- although, what, she doesn't know- when a commotion makes itself known in the living room. Connie tenses and presses her ear to the door, but relaxes once she seems to recognize the voices. "The others are back." She announces, sheathing her sword.

"Others?"

"The other gems." She explained. "And Steven."

Lapis stares at her, long and hard, before finally asking the question that's been haunting her all week. "How long are they planning to hold me captive?"

"That depends." Connie answers calmly. "Are you going to attack the gems?"

"I want to." She answers honestly, balling her fists. "But even I can tell it wouldn't be a very smart idea in my current situation."

She nods her head in agreement. "Going to steal the ocean again? Kill some humans? Ask Homeworld to send in reinforcements?"

"I told you, I'm not the least bit interested in humans. Homeworld has even less of an interest in me than I do them. I'm defunct, after all; can't understand any of their technology to use it to meet their ends."

Connie weighs her answer a long moment before humming. "Then you're free to go."

"What?" She scrambles to her feet. "But you-"

"I'm your guard, not your captor. As long as you don't start causing trouble, the gems will leave you alone. Steven's orders. We can always redirect Homeworld questions to Peridot, after all."

Lapis hesitantly walks past the broken mirror and over to the door. Connie steps aside. "I think I'd like to talk to them. Not because I want to, but because I need to know the 'conditions'-" She spits the word. "I'm supposed to follow." She gives her a look of silent panic. "Will you..."

"I'm your guard, Lapis." She repeats. "The gems will understand if I stand by your side."

Lapis nods, swallowing. Connie falls in line behind her, hand resting comfortably on her sword.

The bathroom door swings open.

Author's Note: And now, my friends, we've reached the end of this story. =) The rest is up to your imagination.

See you all around the fandom! Happy holidays of all sorts to you all; if you don't celebrate, then just have happy days!

-Mandaree1

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