YOU DON'T KNOW?

Death asked this question of Steven, who nodded in response.

WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW?

Steven could feel a flicker of disappointment coming from the man known as Death. The carrier of souls really seemed to want to know what Steven thought of his existence. Though Steven felt pressured, he still smiled. He smiled because he didn't know why he existed.

"I mean I don't know." The boy replied. He looked to the ground, remembering the message his mother had left him. "My mom.. She left me a video."

WHAT DOES A VIDEO HAVE TO DO WITH YOUR EXISTENCE?

Death asked, crossing His arms. Steven looked up from the ground, staring into the infinity of His blue stare. "Everything."

"She told me.." Steven started, clutching his stomach even more tightly than before. "..that I was going to be something extraordinary. That I was going to be a human being. But I don't feel human."

ARE YOU SAYING YOU FEEL MORE LIKE A GEM?

Steven shook his head. "No, I don't feel like a gem either."

WHAT DO YOU FEEL LIKE?

It was clear to Steven that even though Death was a timeless being, He was starting to grow impatient. Tears started to leak from the corner of his eyes. His smile just as wide as before, Steven cried as he spoke.

"I know that I'm both of them. Human and gem, but.. It feels like I don't belong to either side." Steven took a breath, feeling his throat constrict. "What am I to humans because I have powers? What am I to gems because I'm so weak? I-I don't know!"

Steven let go of his stomach, of his gem, clutching at his head with both hands instead.

Death sighed. He should have known that Steven would never be ready, not as a child at least. Slowly, He pulled His hood over His head and snapped His fingers for His horse. Binky came to His side in an instant, and Death climbed into the saddle, taking the reins.

I WILL RETURN AGAIN.. I HOPE YOU WILL HAVE MY ANSWER NEXT TIME.

"What about you?" Steven asked, looking up at Death on His white horse. "Why do you exist?" Without hesitation, Death answers.

I EXIST TO CARRY SOULS OVER TO THE OTHER SIDE. WHETHER THEY BE RELIGIOUS OR SIMPLY BELIEVE THEY WILL ROT IN THE GROUND. THAT IS MY DUTY. IF I DO NOT HELP THEM, THEY CEASE TO BE.

"What's it like..? To know why you exist?"

Death did not expect this question. For a moment, the reaper of souls was actually surprised. Stumped. What did it feel like to know why He lives? To know why He walks this Earth? What did Death feel like to actually know of His existence and acknowledge His purpose, where billions of humans do not? For the first time, Death thought about his existence, turning His gaze toward the ground.

Death thought about the hundreds of billions of souls He guided to the other side. His conversations with each and every one of them was implanted in Him. He remembered them all. He remembered how afraid they were to see Him. How badly they didn't want to die.

Then He thought about Steven's answer. What was it like to not know? What was it like to wonder about your existence, to be free to think about what one could be, rather than what one is. Was Steven really so in the wrong for not knowing why he was born?

IT'S.. LONELY.

Without looking up, Death and His horse began to walk away. Steven stood up straight and wiped his tears. He wanted to talk more with Death, to ask Him more questions, to be able to give Him what He wanted. But Steven didn't say a word. He watched as Death disappeared from his sight, returning to wherever He came from.

It was so surreal. If Steven didn't know any better, he would think he'd be dreaming. But he did know better. He knew better because he knew the kinds of dreams he had.

Steven sighed and turned around to face the barn. The gems were in there, waiting for him. He'd better not keep them waiting.

Slowly, he reached for one of the handles of the barn's double doors. He pulled, and it swung open easily. Really, opening this door, which he'd normally have just a little struggle with, was the easiest thing he's ever done in his life. At least for today.

"Guys..?" He called quietly, poking his head through the barn door. He was pulled inside by thin, white arms, quickly being pressed against Pearl's body in a tight hug.

"Oh thank goodness you're alright.." She whispered. "When Garnet came in alone, I was so afraid for you." Pearl suddenly pulled Steven away from her, looking him up and down. "He didn't hurt you, did He?"

To Steven, being pulled so forcefully into a hug and pushed away just as forcefully should have been a blur to him. But not today. In the split second it took for Pearl to pull him into the barn, Steven saw the worried faces of his family.

Garnet stood at the back of the barn next to the sleeping Lapis, arms crossed, back against the wall. Her smile showed great relief in seeing that Steven was alright. Amethyst sat with Peridot in the middle of the floor. Peridot was curled in a ball in a sitting position, visibly shivering. Amethyst rubbed the green gem's back, trying to calm her down. And then there was Pearl, now staring at Steven, waiting for his answer. So he smiled, and gave her what she wanted.

"I'm fine, Pearl."

Just like that, Steven was being smothered again. But he didn't mind. He wrapped his arms around her in turn, laughing in relief. With the boy's laughter, the tension in the room slowly evaporated.

Amethyst laughed with Steven, and Pearl joined shortly afterward. Peridot's shivering came to a stop, and Amethyst asked if she was alright. With a nod and a thanks, the green gem stood and went to join Steven and Pearl. Being closed to him helped her tremendously. Amethyst followed soon after, initiating a group hug between the four of them. They all laughed, glad that everything was alright. But Garnet had a question that just had to put everyone down again.

"Where is He?"

Everyone's laughter died down. They all pulled away from each other, looking to the middle of the barn, where Garnet now stood. Steven didn't want to talk about Him anymore.. but he knew Garnet wouldn't let up.

"He went back to.. to wherever He goes back to."

"Will He come back?"

Yet more questions. Would Steven ever escape these irritating questions? Yes, yes he would. After today, he's sure that the gems would agree with him that he needs his space.

"He said He would." Steven answered, much to Peridot's dismay.

"He can't come back!" The green gem wailed, grabbing onto Steven's arm. "I don't want Him to come back!"

Steven gave Peridot a quick, reassuring smile, then turned his attention back to Garnet. "He said He would.. But I don't think He will."

"What makes you think that?" Garnet asked.

"I think I made Him sad." Steven looked toward the ground, remembering Death's somber tone when He spoke those last words. That was the voice of a tired man, one who's seen more than one ever needs to see. "I told Him I didn't know why I exist, and don't try to tell me either."

Steven said this because he knew Pearl would tell him that he existed because of Rose. He knows how he exists. That's not what Death was asking.

"He kept asking me question, and I got so.. Frustrated. I was scared because I don't know what I'm supposed to do.."

"Oh Steven.." Pearl whispered, holding a hand over her mouth. Amethyst had resumed rubbing Peridot's back, because the green gem was watching her dear friend suffer.

"But.." Steven continued. "..I asked Him the same question. I asked Him why He exists, and He gave me an answer. An actual answer. But then I asked Him how it felt, to know everything about Himself." Steven looked up at Garnet again, and the fusion saw something extraordinary in Steven's eyes.

Pity. Pity for Death.

"He said it felt lonely."

Garnet knew this already. She knew that Death was a lonely creature, possibly the loneliest in the known universe. The fusion looked down at Amethyst, who returned Garnet's gaze. If anyone in this room were to know what being lonely felt like, it would be Amethyst.

But even more so than Amethyst, it would be Lapis. Trapped for thousands of years in a confined space, unable to converse with the people around her, only able to watch and observe. Much like Death. But even in those many years Lapis remained dormant, Death has lived through the same pain since the beginning of time.

"If.. If that's what it's like to know why I exist, then I don't want to know." Steven continued, staring at the ground once more. His fists were shaking by his sides. "I don't want to be alone."

"You're never alone." Garnet said softly, but sternly. She knelt in front of Steven, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. He looked up into her eyes. She had removed her shades. "You'll always have us, whether you know why you walk the Earth or not. The truth is, I don't know why I'm here, either."

"You don't?" Steven asked, his voice high, shaky. He was hopeful.

"No." Garnet confirmed with a smile. "None of us do. What created us? What purpose are we given? Those are questions we can't answer.. But we can choose our own path. Steven, we choose to protect you. We choose to live with you, to stay beside you in the darkest of times, because we love you. There doesn't need to be a reason behind it. We're happy just the way we are. And you have that same privilege."

Steven looked around the room. Pearl was smiling widely, tears in her eyes. Amethyst was smirking, using Peridot's shoulder as an arm rest. The green gem had her hands clasped together, also mesmerized by Garnet's words. Then Steven looked again at Garnet. Once again, Steven felt at peace, all thanks to his family. He wrapped his arms around Garnet, quickly followed by everyone else. With such an eventful day, Steven had just enough energy for two more words.

"Thank you."

Author's Note:

Well there it is. I hope you enjoyed this little tidbit of Steven's encounter with the Grim Reaper. It's been a blast writing it, but it has to end sometime.

I mentioned at the beginning of the story that this wouldn't be long, and it took me much longer to finish it than I thought it would. But with this story's completion, I'll be free to work on my other projects, and maybe start on a new story.

Be on the lookout for the next chapter of "Hell Hath no Fury". As always, so long for now.