We Are The Crystal Ponies

by Levi_Lover1993

Chapters

Gem Glow
Laser Light Cannon
Cheeseburger Backpack
Bubble Buddies
Serious Ebony

Gem Glow

Narrator's POV.
"Noooo! This can't be happening! This has to be a dream!" I cried in dismay and distraught. I ran over to my friend and threw my arms around his waist, "Swift Wind! Swift Wind! Please tell me I'm dreaming!"

"Get off me, man. I'm stocking here." Swift Wind told me, walking off and leaving me to face-plant the ground.

Oh, I'm sorry. I should introduce myself. My name is Quartzite Universe Pie. I'm cousin to the infamous Pinkie Pie from Ponyville. I'm 13 years old and... Well... I guess I'm just a normal Unicorn colt.

Dark brown, curly mane and tail. Check.

Dark eyes. Check.

Light pink fur coat. Check.

Cutie Mark of a shooting star. Check.

Yup, I'm a normal Unicorn colt.

Swift Wind is one of my friends in my hometown of Beach City. He's a tall and skinny Pegasus stallion. With ginger hair styled in some kind of poofy mohawk, light blue fur coat and dark brown eyes.

"I'm sorry, Quartzite. I guess they stopped making them." Swift Wind's colleague, Sweet Tune, apologized and explained.

Sweet Tune is actually nicer than Swift Wind. Unlike him, she's a Unicorn mare who's build is more short and stout. Nearly the same height as me. Sweet Tune has shoulder-length curly blonde hair, tangerine fur coat and deep blue eyes.

I sat straight up again, "Stopped making them? Why in the world would they stop making cookie cats? They are only the most scrumptious and delicious ice-cream sandwich ever made! Don't they have laws for this?"

Swift Wind sighed, continuing to stock the shelves, "Tough bits, man. Nobody buys them anymore. I guess they couldn't compete with Lion Lickers."

Wait. Did he say 'Lion Lickers'? I groaned in slight annoyance. You can't be serious, "Not Lion Lickers! Nobody likes them! They don't even look like lions! Kids these days. I'll tell you what!"

Then I sighed and walked over to the Cookie Cat freezer, "Oh, sweet cookie cats, with your crunchy cookie outside..." I drew the symbol on the glass of the door, "Your icy creamy insides, you were too good for this world."

I kissed the symbol and hugged the freezer. Sweet Tune spoke up, "Uh, Quartzite? Do you want to take the freezer with you?"

I looked at her and nodded.

*A Little Bit Later...*
With Sweet Tune's help, I was able to get the Cookie Cat freezer strapped to my back and made my way to Ebony's home, which was a bungalow built over the Gem Temple.

Gems are a magical alien race that are personifications of our own gemstones; rubies, emeralds, diamonds, pearls and even quartzes. They take anthropomorphic Pony forms, just like normal Ponies, but there are differences. Fluffier ears. leonine tails. Matching color schemes and gems somewhere on their bodies. Like forehead, chest, back and naval.

Ebony Mai Pie is my older half-sister, and has been my best friend since I was born. We're half-siblings because we have the same father; Graphite Stone Pie, also known as Gaia Universe.

She is a teenage Earth Pony Mare around three years older than me, making her 16 years old. But she's not as normal as I am. She's Half-Gem.

Ebbie never got to know her mother, Rose Quartz, because her mother gave up her physical form to give Ellie life. And she was entrusted to my family and our guardians, the Crystal Gems. Kind as she is intelligent. Intelligent as she is shy.

Ebony met up with me by the stairs, "Hey, Quartzite. What's up?"

Ebony is quite tall for her age. And she shares traits that show her Gem heritage. Her fur coat is a violet-indigo color. Long, ravenette mane and tail with pink streaks. Her eyes are hazel, nearly green. And a large, round, pink gem embedded in her naval. Her Cutie Mark is of her Gem with a star and wisps circling around them.

She wore a pair of black-framed glasses over her eyes. A white collared t-shirt under a pair of black hooded overalls. A purple sash around her waist. Dark blue and black striped finger-less gloves.

Kinda like a gothic geek look.

I waved, "Hey, Ebbie. What's going on?"

"I just got back from getting groceries." She answered.

Ebbie and I entered through the front door and I spoke up, "Hey, guys! You won't believe this!"

Before I could continue, some centipede monster attacked me. I tried to pry it off me, until it was tied and pulled back by a black and purple whip.

I looked behind it and saw the whip belonged to Amethyst. "'Sup, Quartzite? Hey, Nora." She greeted, then threw the monster across the living room.

Amethyst is a purple Gem. A Quartz, but she's about the same height as me. Maybe about an inch or two taller than me. She takes the form of a Pegasus mare. And her Gem placement is in the center of her chest.

Her fur coat is a shade of light purple. Her long, wavy pale purple mane and tail reach past her ankles and bangs cover her left eye. Her Cutie Mark is her whip and Gem with a star behind it.

She wears a darker purple tank top with the right strap hanging over her shoulder. Under her tank top, Amethyst wears a pair of black overalls with purple stars at the knees and white boots.

I looked around and saw Pearl fighting off more of the monsters at the Warp Pad with her spear and ballet moves.

Pearl is a tall and skinny Unicorn Gem. Her stature gives her a crane or swan feel. Her Gem placement is her forehead.

Pearl's fur coat is white, or a very pale cream. Her short pointed mane and tail are a pastel orange and she wears a lace-y short dress over a pastel blue tube top and pastel pink shorts. Pastel blue hooves and nails.

Her Cutie Mark is her Gem overlapping a Fluer de lis.

Pearl knocked a monster over toward Garnet. Garnet broke its back and threw toward another. She continued fighting more of the monsters near the kitchen, using brute force and her gauntlets.

Garnet is the tallest Gem out of Ebony's guardians. She's a tall Zebra-Earth Pony hybrid. Calm and mysterious as she is beautiful. She's unique because she has two Gems. One in each palm of her hands.

Her skin is a brick red fur coat with darker stripes. Black square-shaped afro mane and tail. You can't see her eyes because she wears a pair of shades that hide her eyes. Her Cutie Mark is two Gems tracing a heart.

She wears a black and red body suit with a star on her chest, dark red sleeves and black gloves under her gauntlets.

One of the monsters leaped on top of Garnet's head. She calmly grabbed it, ripped it in half and it poofed like a cloud, so the monsters must be involved with Gems.

It turns out the entire house was infested with the monsters. I put the freezer on the couch next to me.

Ebony gasped, "Whoa! What are these things?"

Another monster crawled past me. Pearl picked one of the monsters, "Ugh! Sorry, Ebony. We'll get these centipeetles out of your room." Then she turned to me, "We think they were trying to get into the temple."

"You don't have to get rid of them. They are really cool!" I encouraged.

However, the monster, centipeetle, spat acid at me. I stepped back and the acid hit the floor, melting a hole through the floorboards.

Amethyst threw another centipeetle into a wall and the monster poofed. "Um, you guys? These things don't have Gems." She alerted.

"That means there must be a mother somewhere nearby." Garnet summarized.

Another monster tried to surprise-attack her, but Garnet punch-poofed it without flinching.

"We should probably find it before anyone gets hurt." Pearl suggested.

I got excited and asked, "Ooh! Ooh! Can I come? Can I? Can I?"

Pearl gave me a smile, "Sorry, Quartzite. But I don't think Graphite and Spirit Glow will allow it."

"Can I come? I would like to help." Ebbie asked.

Pearl looked at her and grabbed the centipeetle's head, "Ebony, until you learn to control the powers in your Gem, we'll take care of protecting Ponykind..." She snapped its neck and dropped it, "Okay?"

Ebony nodded in understanding.

I sulked and sighed, "Aw, man." Then I heard the refrigerator door open and noticed a centipeetle was going through it, "Hey! Get out of there!"

I chased it off, "Go on! Shoo! Shoo!" Once it was gone, I looked at the mess it made, "Aw! They got into everything!" I looked at the bug and shouted, "Not cool!"

Ebony giggled and smiled, "Good thing I went grocery shopping."

Garnet punched it toward the temple's door.

I looked into the freezer and saw familiar pink wrappers with a smiling cat on them. Wait a minute!

Stars appeared in my eyes, "No way! I-It can't be! What--" I grabbed a pink one and shouted, "Ebbie, come look!"

Ebony finished fixing her bed and looked. She smiled, "No way. Cookie Cats?" She made her way to the kitchen and grabbed one from the freezer, "Where did you get these?! I thought they stopped making them!"

Pearl closed the door and smiled with a shrug, "Well, we heard that, too, and since they are your and Quartzite's favorites-"

"We went out and stole a bunch." Amethyst finished.

Pearl glared and corrected, "I went back and paid for them."

"The whole thing was my idea." Garnet spoke up, making her gauntlets disappear into her Gems.

"It was everyone's idea." Amethyst interjected.

"Not really." Garnet answered.

Pearl folded her arms and sighed, "All that matters is that Steven and Eleanor are happy."

I was so happy, I broke into song of the Cookie Cat theme,

"Now available at Gergins off Route 109." I finished.

Garnet and Ebony clapped while Amethyst and Pearl giggled.

Ebony looked at the wrapper and smiled, "I can't believe you did this! Thank you. I'm gonna save these forever!"

Then I opened the wrapper, "Right after I eat this one. Hello, old friend."

I took a bite off the left ear of the ice cream sandwich. Yum. Raspberry and vanilla ice cream in a chocolate cookie wafer. So good!

Happiness and delight filled me to the brim, "So good! I like to eat the ears first."

Ebony opened hers and took a bite off the right ear. She smiled in delight, "Rasberry ice cream is so hard to come by. It's good."

"Uh, Nora." Amethyst called Ebony with wide eyes.

I looked and noticed a bright pink glow coming from Ellie's stomach, "Wha-?"

I gasped, "Ebbie, your Gem!"

"Quick! Try and summon your weapon!" Amethyst encouraged.

"I-I don't know how!" Ebony replied with a squeak in her voice.

The glow must be responding, because it was starting to fade.

"Aah! It's fading! How do we make it come back?!" I panicked.

"Calm down, Quartzite." Pearl told me calmly, then told Ebbie, "Breathe, Ebony. Don't force it."

"Yeah. And try not to poop yourself, either." Amethyst added.

"Please, don't." Garnet agreed.

Unfortunately, the glow vanished. Ebony sighed.

I sat down and sulked, "Aw! And you were really close that time, Ebbie!"

Ebony shrugged, "There's always next time."

She put both hers and my sandwiches back into their wrappers and put them back into the freezer.

Ebony looked at our guardians, "Is it okay, if I can ask how you are able to summon a weapon?"

Pearl quickly raised her hand, "Oh! I'll go first!"

*A Little Later...*
Ebony Mai Pie's POV.
Pearl lead me out of the temple and to a cliff with a cherry blossom tree.

"Pay attention to these petals, Ebony. The petal's dance seems improvised, but it is being calculated in real time, based on the physical properties of this planet. With hard work and dedication, you can master the magical properties of your Gem and perform your own dance!" Pearl told me.

She closed her eyes and summoned her spear from her Gem. Then she caught a petal with ease, "Like so."

I looked at the ground and picked up a group of the fallen petals.

*Later, At the Big Donut...*
I started practicing with the petals. However, I'm not having much luck. Amethyst came by from picking out donuts from the garbage.

"Did Pearl tell you the petal thing?" She asked me.

"Yeah. I need to practice really hard, so I could discover my dance and summon my weapon..." I answered, "I think."

"Listen, Nora. All that practice stuff is no fun." Amethyst told me. She took a bit from the donut and continued, "Whenever I need to summon my weapon, it just happens!"

She closed her eyes and reached for her Gem. Her Gem glowed and she summoned her whip. She used her whip and sliced the dumpster in half.

"See? Didn't try at all." Amethyst smiled.

I scratched my head in confusion. Try hard and try nothing at the same time? I don't get it.

My train of thought was broken by a loud gasp. Swift Wind just arrived, with a bag of leftover donuts, "Again?!"

Amethyst and I quickly left the scene, before he found out how it happened.

*The Next Morning...*
I joined Garnet at the lighthouse, at the top of the temple.

"So, I'm supposed to work really hard and not try at all at the same time?" I asked her.

"Yes." She answered, then her Gems glowed, "Or you can link you mind with the energy of all existing matter, channeling the collective power of the universe through your gem, which results in..." She summoned her gauntlets, "At least that's my way of doing it."

I just stared in dumbfound. Work really hard, don't try at all, link my mind with the energy of the universe?! Okay... My head hurts.

*Later That Day...*
"I think the best bet is to re-create what happened the last time your Gem glowed." Quartzite told me, as he gathered me and our guardians to the fridge.

"So Garnet and Amethyst were here." He stratigized, as Amethyst sat on the counter, "Pearl was next to the fridge." Then thought for a moment, "Hmm, hmm."

I looked at Amethyst, "Amethyst, I think your arms were crossed."

Amethyst nodded and folded her arms, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"And, Pearl, your hoof was like this." Steven spoke up, moving Pearl's right hoof a small angle.

"I don't think it works this way, Quartzite." Pearl shrugged.

But Quartzite didn't listen and turned to Garnet, "And, Garnet." He grabbed her face and positioned it, "Uh... Uh... Yeah."

He opened the freezer and grabbed the Cookie Cat I took a bite of yesterday. He gave it to me, "Then, Ebbie, you took a bite of this Cookie Cat."

I unwrapped the ice cream treat and was about to take a bite, but Quartzite stopped me, "Oh! Wait! I sang the song first!"

Then he started singing again, "Uh, he's a frozen treat... All new taste... Interstellar war... And now available at Gergins." He sighed, "Aw! It was funnier last time!"

I checked the Gem on my chest and there was no glow. I sat down with my knees hugged close to my chest and sighed with a sulk, "Maybe I'm not a real Crystal Gem."

Pearl knealt to my level and assured with her hand over my shoulder, "Don't be silly, Ebony. Of course you are."

Amethyst nodded, "And you're fun to have around, even if your Gem is useless." Pearl growled and Amethyst corrected herself, "I mean you're one of us, Nora. We're not the Crystal Gems without you."

Garnet quietly nodded in agreement.

Steven sat to my level, "Come on, Ebbie. Don't be blue. Even if you don't have powers, you've still got Cookie Cat!"

I looked at him, then the others. They were all smiling at me. I regained my smile, "I guess you're right, Quartzite."

I took a bite of the ice cream treat in my hand and smiled. Cookie Cats always tastes better the second bite. I started to feel better about myself. I felt something well up inside me and became solid outside of me.

Pearl gasped, "Ebony! It's a shield!"

I opened my eyes and looked. Pearl was right. A small pink shield has appeared in front of me. It had a vine pattern spiraling toward the center. The rim was white. And the center had an emblem of a spinning triangle.

"Whoa..." Was all I could say.

I reached to touch the shield. My gem stopped glowing and the shield faded away. That was incredible!

Quartzite looked at the Cookie Cat in my hand and exclaimed, "Cookie Cats! You can summon your weapon by eating ice cream!"

"I don't think that's my secret, Quartzite." I spoke up.

Pearl picked up the wrapper on the floor, "What's in these things?"

Then the ground started shaking. It's not an earthquake. Shadows of the centipede monsters crawled up the window. And there was a huge one following them.

"What was that?" Quartzite asked.

We ran outside and there was a giant centipede monster on top of the Temple. This one had a Gem in its mouth. Longer green-ish white hair. And it was angry.

"It's the mother." Garnet alerted, as she jumped into action.

Pearl looked at me and Quartzite, "Ebony, stay in the house. You too, Quartzite."

Quartzite shook his head, "No way! I'm coming too!"

"Please. We can help." I insisted.

Quartzite ran inside and grabbed a bunch of Cookie Cat treats and the themed fridge.

We exit the house and saw the monster shooting acid at a stone hand that Garnet, Pearl and Amethyst were hiding behind.

Quartzite threw a rock at the creature's head, "Hey!" The creature turned to us, "Leave them alone!"

"Quartzite! Ebony! No!" The Gems shouted.

"Cookie Cat-Crystal Combo Powers, activate!" Quartzite shouted, as he grabbed a treat from the fridge, unwrapped it and stuffed it into my mouth.

I ate the treat, but my Gem wasn't glowing and no shield. The creature aimed to attack us. I grabbed Quartzite's hand and ran from it. Quartzite grabbed two more of the treats and unwrapped them.

"Goodbye, my friends." He whispered.

"Quartzite..." I tried to speak, but he stuffed to two treats into my mouth.

I swallowed the ice cream and cookie. My stomach growled and I was starting to feel nauseous. Still no Gem glow or shield.

"Why isn't it working?!" Quartzite exclaimed.

The creature spat acid at me and Quartzite. I grabbed my baby brother and jumped out of the way.

"Quartzite! Ebony!" I heard Garnet call, but she got caught by the monster's tail-pincers.

The monster turned its attention back to the Gems. Quartzite picked himself up and looked at the Cookie Cat fridge. It was melted half-way through. No more Cookie Cats.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no!" Quartzite cried, running toward what was left of his gift from Big Donut.

He reached to touch the machine. It sparked and shut down. Quartzite sulked and started sobbing.

"Cookie Cat, he's a pet for your tummy...." I started singing, as anger started burning in my heart, "Cookie Cat, he's super duper yummy..." I picked up a the wire connecting to the fridge, "Cookie Cat! He left his family behind!" I charged toward the centipede, "Cookie C-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-t!"

I threw the fridge toward the centipede. Direct hit and shocked the beast.

"Now available nowhere..." I finished, falling to my knees, as my anger vanished and sadness replaced.

"Yes!" Amethyst shouted in cheer.

"Gems. Weapons." Garnet instructed. She, Amethyst and Pearl burst out of their hiding place, weapons summoned, "Let's do it."

Garnet, Pearl and Amethyst charged toward the centipede and defeated it. The creature poofed with only a green sphere remaining. Garnet bubbled the Gem and teleported it elsewhere.

Quartzite buried the last wrapper of the Cookie Cats, "Farewell, sweet Cookie Cats." He put a leaf over the small grave, "I'll always remember the time we spent together."

I joined him, but my stomach growled and I started to feel nauseous again.

Quartzite put his hand over my shoulder, "Shh. Hush now."

"Are you crying?" Amethyst asked me, joining us.

I nodded, "Only a little..."

She sat beside Quartzite, "Well, I guess your powers don't come from ice cream."

"Of course they don't come from ice cream!" Pearl nodded in a 'I-Told-You-So' tone, then sat beside me, "Don't worry, Ebony." She put her hand over my shoulder, "I'm sure someday you'll figure out how to activate your Gem."

"Yes." Garnet nodded towering over us, "In your own Ebony-y way."

I regained my smile, "Thanks, guys. That means a-" My stomach growled again and the nausea got stronger, "I think I might have eaten too many Cookie Cats."

Everyone giggled around me. I couldn't hold it in anymore. I threw up over Quartzite's Cookie Cat grave.

"Ooops. Sorry, Ebbie." Quartzite apologized with a sheepish chuckle.

Laser Light Cannon

Ebony Pie's POV.
Sunsets... The time of day that makes your feel small compared to the stars appearing in the sky.

Not this time however. There was another sun-like object in the sky. A couple of nights ago, it started out as a normal star. But it got bigger and bigger as the nights passed. Now we know it's not getting bigger. It was coming for us.

Pearl, Garnet and I were outside the Temple, looking at the star. Amethyst and Quartzite were elsewhere.

"This is bad." Garnet spoke up.

"Look at the size of it!" Pearl gasped, looking through a telescope, "I had no idea these things were so big!"

"What is it, exactly?" I asked.

Then we heard Amethyst call, "Garnet! Nora! Pearl!"

Garnet, Pearl and I turned and saw Amethyst arriving, carrying Quartzite over her head.

"We saw!" Pearl answered, then pointed out, "Some of us are trying to protect Ponykind!" Then she asked, "Where were you?"

Amethyst put Quartzite down and answered casually, "Eating fry bits."

Pearl face-palmed and sighed, "Ugh."

"Can I see?" Quartzite asked.

Pearl stepped aside and Quartzite looked through the telescope. The star opened to reveal to be an eye.

Quartzite smiled, "Whoa. It's a giant eyeball! Awesome!"

Pearl shook her head, "Not awesome, it's a Red-Eye!"

"A Red-Eye?" Quartzite repeated, then stepped away in panic, "It's going to infect us all!"

"That's pinkeye, Quartzite." Garnet corrected. Amethyst giggled.

"I take it Red-Eyes are worse than pinkeye?" I asked.

Garnet and Amethyst nodded. Pearl explained, "It's going to crash into Beach City, and crush us, along with a bunch of oblivious, innocent people!" Then shouted, "We have to stop it!"

"What are we going to do?" Steven asked.

"The only thing powerful enough to destroy it is a light cannon, that belonged to Rose Quartz." Garnet answered, adjusting her shades.

"Wow. Mum thought about nearly every situation, didn't she?" I smiled.

Pearl nodded with a forlorn look. She must miss my mother a lot.

Amethyst sighed, "If Rose were here, this would be so easy."

Pearl hugged herself, "I know, but she's not, and the cannon is missing." Then rubbed her chin in thought, "We'll have to find another solution."

An idea came to me, "If it belonged to Mum, I bet Dad knows where it is."

Quartzite looked at me, "Dad?"

I nodded, "Yeah. He could help save the day."

Quartzite nodded, "That's actually a good idea."

The Gems looked concerned and uneasy.

"Graphite is nice, Quartzite." Pearl assured, but admitted, "But I doubt Rose would entrust someone like him with such a powerful weapon."

Amethyst put her hand over Quartzite's shoulder, "Your dad is kind of a mess."

"Amethyst!" Pearl glared at the purple Pegasus Quartz.

Amethyst shrugged her shoulders, "I'm just saying! Even if she did leave it with him, he probably broke it, or lost it, or dropped it in the ocean by now."

Garnet nodded, "True..."

Quartzite shook his head, "No way! I'm sure he is just keeping it somewhere safe." Then volunteered, "Ebbie and I'll go ask him."

Steven grabbed my hand and we were about to leave, but Garnet interjected, "We can handle this."

She turned to Amethyst, "Ready?"

Amethyst nodded and Garnet picked her up. She leaped into the air and threw Amethyst toward the Red-Eye. Amethyst hit the eye, but fell into the water. The eye had no sign of damage. This is gonna take a while.

"Uh... W-We're gonna go." I spoke up, taking hold of Quartzite's hand.

Pearl waved us off, "Okay, good luck."

Quartzite and I ran to the other side of the Temple, to the local car wash. Dad decided to open it with the money he made selling cds of his old music. Some of it is not half bad.

We found a closed van on the driveway and Quartzite started knocking on the back doors, "Dad, it's me! Daaad? Are you in there?" He rammed his shoulder into the doors, "Wake up! We have to save the world!"

Out of options and getting impatient, Quartzite climbed to the roof of the van and jumped on it, "Dad!"

He slipped and fell. Still no response. I sighed. Maybe if I could somehow phase into the van, this would be easier. But, I don't think I have that kind of power. I'm still learning.

I knocked on the door, "Dad?"

The car alarm went off, causing me to squeak in startle.

Dad exit the van and ran toward me with a waffle iron, "What do you want? I have a waffle iron!"

Graphite Pie was an Earth Pony stallion in his late 30s to early 40s. Long hair, like Amethyst's, but balding and a faded brown color. A matching beard. His fur coat was a light caramel color and he wore a white tank top and sweatpants.

I grabbed his wrists, "Dad, calm down. It was just us."

Dad looked at me and Quartzite with tired eyes, then switched off the alarm, "Ebony? Quartzite?"

Quartzite hopped off the roof and hugged our father. Dad released the hug and looked at me, "I almost waffled your face!"

I giggled, "You were still waking up."

"What are you two doing up so late?" He asked Quartzite and I.

"What do you mean?" Quartzite asked, "The sun just went down an hour ago."

"Oh..." Dad uttered, then rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish chuckle, "It was a slow day at the car wash." Then he asked, "Anyway, what's up? Just needed to see your old man, pal around, learn some lessons about life?"

Quartzite shook his head.

"Actually, we've come to ask about Mum's light cannon." I answered, "We need it to destroy the Red-Eye coming toward the beach."

"Red-Eye?" Dad repeated.

"That!" Quartzite answered, pointing at the Red-Eye.

Dad looked at it, as Amethyst was thrown at it for the fourth time. Again, she hit and fell into the water. The eye was untouched.

"Wait. Is that a magical thing?" Dad asked, then pointed out, "The Gems told me not to get involved with magic stuff. I-it could be dangerous or interfere with what's left of my mane."

"But they need Rose Quartz's cannon. You've got to know where it is!" Quartzite argued, "Like a cave dungeon or a cloud fortress or in a clam at the bottom of the ocean."

Dad picked his waffle iron and put it back in his van.

"You and Mum were very close." I explained.

Dad turned to us, "Well, I don't know about all that, but I have an idea where it might be."

We hopped into his van and Dad drove us down the road to the storage place, 'U-Stor'.

"A magical storage unit!" Quartzite gasped with stars in his eyes.

Dad shrugged, "Not exactly. But some would say there's magic inside." He grabbed a key and unlocked the door, "It's just a shed I use to keep things that don't fit in the van." Then he opened the storage unit, "If it's anywhere, it'll be in here."

The storage unit was filled to the brim with boxes and other stuff. And I thought Amethyst was a hoarder.

No offence...

Quartzite entered and tried to move some boxed. The boxes collapsed, giving a cave-like entrance.

I put my hand over my brother's shoulder, "Let me, Quartzite. I'm skinnier and a little faster."

Quartzite nodded in agreement, "Alright." Then pointed out, "But if you're going in there, you're gonna need some gear."

With that, he tied a flashlight on top of my head with a sock, and tied an electrical cord around my waist.

Quartzite smiled, "All set."
Dad gave me a thumbs up, "Good luck!"

I switched the flashlight on and entered the storage unit by crawling through the boxes.

Inside, the place was full of stuff and a few bits and pieces of junk. Watching my step, I journeyed deeper into the unit, squeezing through a sandwich of mattresses. I saw something an grabbed it. It was a golf kit with three clubs.

"Do you golf?" I asked Dad.
Dad shrugged, "Ah, I like to think of myself as someone who would golf... Eventually."

I continued deeper into the storage unit. I found a bongo drum. Tennis balls and a t-shirt cannon. Then I found a box full of cds. They all had Dad's face on them, so they must be his.

"Dad! I found a box of your old cds!" I called.

Dad sighed, "Oh, man. I couldn't give those things away." Then he explained, "You know, before I ran the car wash, when I was a band, I traveled the whole country."

I continued through the unit, "I know, Dad."

"When I came to play a concert here in Beach City, no one showed up except-" "An alligator!" Quartzite cut into our father's story.

Dad shook his head and chuckled, "No, it was Ebony's mother, Rose Quartz."

"Interesting..." I muttered to myself in thought.

"And we were always together after that." Dad continued, "Until she gave up her life to bring you into the world, Ebbie."

I heard a crack and I saw my knee leaning on a cracked photo of Dad and my mother. A large Unicorn with white fur coat and pink curly mane.

"Oh, no." I squeaked, then called, "Dad, I broke a photo of our family."

"It's okay, Ebony." He assured me, "If every pork chop were perfect, we wouldn't have hot dogs."

As in response, a light glowing before me. A large cannon was resting, undisturbed in the back of the unit.

I gasped and smiled, "The light cannon!" Then I shouted to Quartzite and our father, "Quartzite, Dad, I found it!"

"Really?" The two asked, as I untied the cords around my waist and tied them around the cannon.

"Get the van!" I shouted.

It was quiet for a few moments, then the sound of an engine reached my ears. The cannon moved into the mattresses and exit the unit.

Quartzite exit the van and took a look at the cannon, "This thing could save the city! We've got to get it to the beach!"

"How? It's too big for the van." Dad asked.

A cart rolled past us. Quartzite and Dad grabbed the cannon into the cart. However the cannon was heavier than it looked and crashed through the cart. Quartzite, Dad and I looked at each other and entered the van.

Dad drove the van down to the beach, dragging the cannon behind us.

"Is it gonna be okay?" I asked, referring to the cannon.

Dad shrugged and said, "If every pork chop were perfect-"

"We wouldn't have hot dogs!" Quartzite finished with a sigh.

We saw the Red-Eye. It was larger than when I entered the unit. How long was I in there for?

"That thing's getting huge!" Dad shivered, "It's freaking me out!"

"Can't the van go any faster?" Quartzite asked in a small panic.

Dad put his foot down and the van reached 50 mph, "This is faster!"

"Don't worry." Quartzite assured, then grabbed a cd case from the glove compartment, "Come on. Let's put on your cd."

"Huh, really?" Dad asked with a blush, "Uh, come on, you've heard it."

Quartzite smiled and opened the case, "You come on."

He inserted the cd into the cd player and a guitar solo played, followed by Dad's voice.

We arrived to the beach. Everything started turning red under the presence of the Red-Eye. Amethyst was washed up from the tide.

"Hey, guys!" Quartzite called, as we exit the van.

"He really had it." Pearl gasped.

"We're saved!" Amethyst cheered.

Then the Red-Eye started sucking everything into its pupil.

"We have to use it now." Garnet instructed.

She, Pearl and Amethyst ran toward the cannon.

Peal tried to find the switch, "I don't know how it works! It was Rose's!"

Quartzite turned to our father, "Dad, how do we use it?"

Dad just shrugged his shoulders.

Pearl grabbed Quartzite, "Quartzite, this is serious." Then something hit her, "The Gem." She turned to me, "Ebony! You have Rose's Gem!"

"That's it!" Amethyst smiled. She picked me up and pressed me against the cannon, rubbing my Gem against the surface of the cannon, "Ugh! Come on!"

"Ow..." Was all I could utter.

"Stop that!" Garnet told Amethyst.

Pearl sighed, "It's no use!"

Amethyst nodded, "Fine! Forget it!" Then told Garnet, "Throw me again!"

She leaped into Garnet's arms and Peal shouted, "That's not going to work!"

Then Dad's van got caught in the current of the Red-Eye, dragging the cannon with it. Dad quickly untied the cord, "I got this!" Then started getting dragged toward the eye, "No! Wait! No, maybe I don't!"

"Please, work." Quartzite begged the cannon, "Unlock. Activate. Go. Please? Everyone's counting on you! You can't just be useless! I know you can help!"

"It's okay, Quartzite!" Dad assured his son, "We'll figure out something else! Something even better!"

I nodded in agreement and whispered, "If every pork chop were perfect, we wouldn't have hot dogs..."

Then the cannon started humming. It opened into the form of a blooming white rose.

"It's working!" Pearl gasped.

The cannon fell, but I tried to pick it up and aim it at the eye. It was really heavy. I felt it getting lighter on my shoulder. I saw and it was Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst helping me.

"This is it." Amethyst shouted, as the cannon glowed.

"Brace yourselves!" Garnet shouted.

The cannon fired a blast of light energy, in the form of rose blooming into a silhouette of Rose Quartz. Direct hit into the pupil. The Red-Eye exploded, shattering into pieces.

The debris of large rocks fell all around the beach. Even the stores close-by. Mr. Fryman's car flipped on top of a rock and the alarm went off. Oops...

"Nora, you just saved most of Beach City!" Amethyst smiled, once everything calmed down.

"Sorry, Mr. Fryman!" I shouted.

"What?" Mr. Fryman asked.

"How did you get it to work?" Pearl asked me.

"I just said what Dad says to shrug things off." I answered.

"That thing about pork rinds?" She asked.

Garnet put her hand over Pearl's shoulder and spoke up, "Hot dogs."

"Rose..." Dad sobbed, wiping a tear from his eyes.
T
hen the tide came in. Everyone started laughing, until Dad's van drifted past us, making it way deeper into the current of the ocean.

"My van!" Dad cried.

"It's okay, Dad." Quartzite assured, "If every pork chop were perfect-"

I quickly covered his mouth, "Quartzite, no!"

"I live in there!" Dad shouted, chasing after his van.

Quartzite followed after his father, "Wait up!"

I lightheartedly giggled. Everything is back to normal.

For now...

Cheeseburger Backpack

Ebony Pie's POV.
It's been a quiet day. Nearly over a week since the Red-Eye incident. Amethyst, Pearl and Garnet were away on a mission. Since I'm still learning how to control my Gem powers, I stayed behind to started writing songs and tuning my human mother's bass.

'Let's go in the garden,
You'll find something waiting.
Right there, where you left it,
Lying upside down.
When you f-' "Ebbie!"

I opened my eyes and gasped with a squeak. I looked around and saw Quartzite arrive, holding a parcel in his arms. "Quartzite. You startled me." I told him.

Quartzite scratched the back of his neck, "Oh, sorry." Then showed my his parcel, "Check it out. My parcel finally came."

I smiled, "That's awesome, Quartzite." Then asked, "What is it, exactly?"

"It's gonna help us save the world." He answered with a huge grin, then gave me the parcel, "It's also an anniversary gift from me to you."

"Anniversary for what?" I asked.

"The anniversary of us becoming members of the Crystal Gems." He answered with stars in his eyes.

I giggled, "That's very sweet of you, Quartzite." Then my smile faded, "But I don't have a gift for you."

He smiled, "Your song would make a great gift, when it's finished."

He and I shared a lighthearted giggle. Then the house's windows lit up for a second.

"Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are back!" Quartzite announced and made his way up the stairs.

I set my bass by the stairs and followed after the small Unicorn colt. Quartzite opened the door and the Gems were back, but Garnet was covered in feathers, Pearl was holding a small statue, and Amethyst was carrying a large egg toward the fridge.

"Hello, Quartzite. Hello, Ebony." Garnet greeted.

"Amethyst, we do not need that." Pearl shouted at Amethyst, "It's not going to fit in the fridge."

"What? I got this." The purple Quartz Pegasus argued.

She opened the fridge and removed the tray with milk and bagels. She dropped the tray and put the egg into the fridge.
Closed the door and gave Pearl an 'I-told-you-so' look, "Look it fits! Ha!" Then she got giddy with excitement, "Oh, man, we could make a big omelet or a quiche or big sunny-side-ups! We can bake it!"

I raised a brow and scratched my head, "Uhh... What happened out there?"

"We fought a giant bird." Pearl answered, then explained, "We're only here for a second. We've got to go back out."

"What? Why?" Steven exclaimed.

"We have to place this Moon goddess statue on the top of the lunar sea spire before midnight." She answered.

The Moon Goddess Statue was a small statue of a person holding a large diamond. I felt like I've seen that face before.

"Without it, the whole place will fall apart!" Pearl continued, then looked at me, "Oh, Ebony, you should have seen the spire in its hay-day." Her pearl showed a hologram image of Gems socializing around a fountain, "It was an oasis for Gems on Earth." Then frowned and closed the hologram, "It's abandoned now, but we can still save it with this statue."

Quartzite smiled with stars in his eyes, "Wha- that's perfect!"

"What? Why?" Pearl asked

"Because Ebbie and I can help carry it for you in this!" Quartzite answered.

He put his parcel on the floor and opened it. From the parcel he revealed a backpack, shaped like a cheeseburger.

"A hamburger?" Pearl asked.

"It's a novelty backpack shaped like a cheeseburger!" Quartzite explained, then sighed, "Aw, I blew it. I was just gonna wear it one day, and you guys would be like, 'Dang, Steven, that's so cool', but this is obviously important Gem business."

Pearl nodded, "Yes, so you and Ebony should let us take care of it."

"What?" Quartzite exclaimed, then grabbed my shirt, "Ebbie's a Gem!" Then pointed to the star on his shirt, "I'm wearing a star too."

"But, Quartzite, you're just a Pony." I pointed out, "There are some places that humans cannot survive. It's best if you stay here."

"But you've still got a lot to learn, Ebony." Pearl pointed out.

"So let them come." Amethyst encouraged, "It'll be educational."

"Hmm." Pearl thought for a moment, then shrugged, "All right. You can carry it in your hamburger."

Pearl gave Quartzite the statue and Quartzite opened the backpack. He gasped, "Check this out everything's a pocket! Even the cheese is a pocket! I can fit a lot more stuff in here. Give me a minute. I'll pack extra supplies."

Then he ran off to pack some other stuff into the backpack.He practically packed everything in my room.

"Kid, don't shake me!" A familiar voice spoke from the bedroom.

Quartzite chuckled, "Mr. Queasy!"

"Ohh, I got a medical condition." Mr. Queasy responded.

"You're definitely gonna come in handy." Quartzite smiled, as he put the doll into the backpack.

"Quartzite, we've got to go!" I called.

"Uh, coming!" Quartzite answered.

He ran down the stairs and gave me the backpack. I put the backpack behind my back and we joined the other Gems on the Warp Pad.

Pearl noticed how stuffed the backpack was, "Whoa, Quartzite, did you bring Ebony's whole room?"

"Back that thang up." Amethyst told me. I backed up a bit.

"Let's warp." Garnet instructed.

The Warp Pad activated and began transporting us across the world. Quartzite was floating a little out of control.

"Do you remember how to do this?" Pearl asked me and Quartzite.

I nodded and stayed close. Quartzite, however, was floating away, laughing. He head peeked out of the warp tunnel.

Pearl pulled him back in, "Keep your head in. Come on!"

We arrived at our destination. The Sea Spire. Quartzite stopped floating and landed with a thud.

He recovered and gasped, "The sea spire!"

The Gems were silent. The spire looked similar to an underwater ruin. Like the missing piece of Atlantis. And it was getting weaker by the second.

"It wasn't like this a hundred years ago." Pearl gasped.

Garnet adjusted her shades, "I'm sensing structural instability."

Quartzite nodded, "Oh, yeah." Then shook his head, "That's never good."

I noticed the ground around Quartzite about to give out under his weight.

"Quartzite! Watch out!" I shouted.

Quartzite looked at me, "What?"

I dashed and tackled him out of the way as the cliff crumbled and fell into the whirlpool below us.

Pearl gasped, ran toward me and hugged me tightly, "All right, hold on. We're taking Quartzite and Ebony back!"

I struggled to pry free from Pearl's grip, "Pearl, I'm fine."

"My achin' stomach!" A voice moaned from my backpack.

I looked at the backpack, "What the-?"

Quartzite reached in and grabbed the doll he packed, "Oh, Mr. Queasy!"

He shook him and the doll moaned again, "Kid, you're killin' me."

I pried free from Pearl's grip, sighed and placed my hands over Quartzite's shoulders, "Quartzite, I'm sorry about this, but you're leaving me no choice. I want you to stay and help, I really do, but I'll never forgive myself if something happen to you here."

Then I stood up and hardened my voice slightly, "I'm really sorry, Quartzite, but as the daughter of Rose Quartz, I'm commanding you to go back home and wait for us there. Can you do that for me?"

Quartzite gave me a sad look, but then he nodded, "Alright, Ebbie. As you wish."

He put Mr. Queasy back into the backpack, then made his way back to the Warp Pad. He closed his eyes with a pout and the Warp Pad took him back home.

Pearl smiled at me, "Well done, Ebony."

Amethyst punched my arm, "Yeah, way to use your mother's authority."

"Enough." Garnet spoke up, "We have to move."

With that, the Crystal Gems and I made our way to the spire. Garnet stopped us close to the cliff.

"What's the hold-up?" Amethyst asked, "We can clear this easily."

Garnet shook her head, "No. The magic that sustains the whirlpool creates a vortex that will pull us below."

To demonstrate, she picked up a rock and threw it toward the window of the spire. The rock stopped in mid-air and dropped into the whirlpool below us.

"So we can't jump?" Pearl asked.

A memory hit me, as I opened the cheeseburger backpack. Quartzite packed some sweaters into the patty pocket, in case he and I got cold.

Amethyst noticed what I was doing and asked, "What are those for?"

"They were for keeping warm." I answered, as I grabbed two sweaters and tied two of the sleeves together, "But I got a better idea."

I threw one of the sweaters threw a diamond-shaped hole above the window, like a grappling hook, of sorts. I took a deep breath and jogged toward the edge of the cliff.

The Gems gasped, the closer I got, "Lin-Lin!" "Wait!" "Whoa!"

I leaped off the edge and got caught be the magical vortex. I pulled me down, but I kept a strong grip on the sweaters.

"She's getting sucked down!" Amethyst shouted in worry.

"Ebony!" The others cried.

I mustered my strength to stand against the wall and charged up toward the window. I made it across and the pulling stopped. I fell to one-knee to catch my breath.

"Nora, way to go!" Amethyst cheered, then shouted to the others, "Come on, guys!"

She used her whip like a grappling hook, grabbed Pearl and Garnet and copied what I did, "Ebony-Style!"

The Gems made it across.

"Don't ever do that again!" Pearl shouted, as she recovered from what just happened.

I frowned and rubbed my arm. Garnet walked ahead, patting my back as she passed. Amethyst followed, nudging my arm, as she passed.

Then Pearl smiled at me, "But it was pretty great."

I regained my smile and followed the Crystal Gems through the spire.

Pearl couldn't help but look around the worn-out oasis tower, "Oh, no, no, no. This is even worse than the outside. Ugh! That's oh! Oh, this didn't used to be so oh, and the water damage this pillar oh, and this had a head."

We stopped at a four-armed statue. Pearl looked at me, "Oh, Eleanor, once the statue's in place, it'll restore all of this to its former glory-"

She yelped, as shrimp-like creatures appeared from behind the statue. Upon reaction, Pearl summoned her spear and struck the statue. The top half of the statue fell into the whirlpool.

"What were those creatures?" I asked.

"Crystal shrimp." Pearl answered, withdrawing her weapon.

Then Amethyst called, from the top of the stairs, "You guys, we got a problem."

Pearl and I caught up with Amethyst and Garnet, only to find that our path was blocked by more of the crystal shrimp creatures.

"It's an infestation!" Pearl gasped, "And we have to pass through there to get to the top."

I narrowed my eyes at the shrimp. They're not attacking us, but that doesn't mean they're harmless. They look like they're searching for something.

I dug into my backpack, while Pearl spoke, "We need to clear a path." She used holograms from her pearl to demonstrate, "Amethyst, if you go around to the side and disturb them with a spin attack and, Garnet, if you move to the ceiling and strike this exact spot - then I can advance with my-"

I cut her off, as I threw three breakfast bagels at the shrimp. The shrimp noticed the bagels and gathers to eat them, clearing a path for us.

"Brilliant." Garnet smiled.

"Oh, hey. What do you know?" Amethyst smiled.

"Uh... Uh...." Pearl was lost for words. She regained herself and asked, "How did you know that would work?"

"Simple biology." I shrugged casually. "Any animal, magical or not, can be lured by food. No harm done."

"Hippie." Amethyst joked, as she and Garnet walked ahead.

I lightly giggled and followed closely.

"I just want everyone to know my plan would have also worked." Pearl muttered as she followed close behind me.

The Crystal Gems and I walked up the stairs, to another room. Before we could continue, Garnet froze and shouted, "Watch out!"

Within seconds, an arched wall gave in, creating a river blocking our path.

"What are we gonna do?" Amethyst asked.

Then the Gems looked at me.

I noticed and tilted my head, "What? Me?"

"What have you got?" Garnet asked me.

Then Amethyst started chanting, "Cheeseburger backpack! Cheeseburger backpack!" She looked at Pearl, "Pearl, come on."
Pearl smiled, "Ohh, all right."

Then both the Quartz and Pearl started chanting, "Cheeseburger backpack! Cheeseburger backpack!"

I rubbed my chin in thought, then I looked to my left. A pillar was standing alone. It looked long enough to cross the river with.

"Garnet, you think you can knock that pillar across?" I asked Garnet.

Garnet looked at the pillar. She walked over and kicked the bottom of the pillar, knocking it into the air. While in the air, Garnet elbowed the pillar over the river. I was right, it perfectly reached over the other end.

"Well done, Ebony." Garnet praised me, as she walked across.

I smiled and the rest of us followed after her. The rest of the path to the top of the Sea Spire was clear and easy. Once we reached the top, an alter-like pedestal was waiting for us.

"This is it. The Moon Goddess Pedestal." Pearl gasped, then she looked up at the moon, "And the moon is almost overhead!" She smiled with excitement, "It's not too late to save this piece of history!"

Garnet turned to me, "Ebony, the statue."

I nodded and reached into my backpack. I removed my backpack from my shoulders and searched deeper, but I couldn't feel the statue anywhere.

My blood started to run cold, "Oh no... No, no, no, no..."

"What's the holdup?" Amethyst asked me.

I fell silent for a second, until I found my voice, "I don't have it."

Amethyst and Pearl gasped, "What?!"

"Quartzite must've accidentally left it back in the Temple." I explained.

Garnet, Pearl and Amethyst looked at the moon. It was closing to the center of the sky.

"There's... There's no time!" Pearl sighed in distraught. I can't disappoint the Gems now.

"Wait! I have an idea!" I told them.

I reached into my backpack and got out Steven's doll.

"Could that work?" Amethyst asked.

She and Pearl look at Garnet. Garnet just shrugged her shoulders.

I put the doll onto the pedestal. The doll fell on its side and moaned, "Ugh! Kid, don't shake me!"

A beam of light connected the pedestal to the moon. Steven's doll levitated into the air, but exploded into shreds and stuffing.

Suddenly, the whirlpool began to close around us and the spire was falling apart. The Gems and I struggled to keep our balance.

"Everyone, keep steady!" Garnet told us, as Amethyst fell on top of her.

Disappointed and distraught, I sat down, hugged my knees close to my chest and hid my face in my arms. The whirlpool closed and the Sea Spire was destroyed.

Once everything calmed down, the Gems and I popped out of the surface, catching our breaths.

"I'm so sorry." I apologized to the Gems, "This is all my fault. I broke it."

"No, Ebony, the spire was falling apart when we got here." Pearl assured me, "You handled everything well under pressure. You did great."

Amethyst nodded in agreement, "Yeah, 3 out of 4 of your ideas worked. That's 75%."

A wave of relief washed over me, as I smiled at the Gems. I guess not everything can go as planned.

Just then, a yellow raft popped out of the water. It must have come from the backpack when we were in the water.
Garnet, Pearl, Amethyst and I climbed into the raft.

Pearl and Amethyst chanted, while Garnet searched the horizon, "Cheeseburger backpack! Cheeseburger backpack!"

"It's a three-hour paddle home." Garnet spoke up.

Everything went silent. I searched my backpack and found no oars or paddles. But Quartzite packed enough food for the trip.

"Anyone hungry for a wet bagel?"

Bubble Buddies

Ebony Pie's POV.
*Yawn* What a nap. I gotta say, catching that cold from trying to swim the Gems and I back home was not the best idea I had. Oh well, better me than one of the Gems. They need to be healthy to protect the world. Pearl was awesome, taking good care of me.

I woke up with a gasp to the sound of someone slamming the door closed. I opened my eyes and saw Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl looking out the window and Quartzite leaning against the door, flustered and embarrassed.

"Quartzite?" I asked, finally speaking up.

Quartzite looked at me and smiled, "Ebbie! You're awake."

"What was that about?" I asked, rubbing my eyes, and grabbed my glasses.

"Who were you talking to?" Pearl asked with a nod.

"Huh?" Quartzite tilted his head at the Gems.

"That girl." Garnet answered.

Quartzite blushed, "You saw?" Then answered with a small sulk, "She's just a girl I know. Except she doesn't know me. We've never talked."

I sat up and got out of bed, "You mean that filly from last year's parade?"

Quartzite looked at me, "You remember her?"

I smiled, "Remember her? I still have her bracelet in the freezer."

Amethyst gasped and smiled, squeezing Quartzite's face, "You like her!"

Quartzite's face turned red with embarrassment, "I like everyone."

I got dressed into my casual attire and made my way downstairs. Pearl smiled with excitement, "Let's set up a play-date. I'll write up an invitation and work out a schedule." She gasped, "Oh, we'll have to find out her favorite kind of tea..."

"There's no need for that, Pearl." I spoke up, "Steven just needs to be nice to her."

Garnet nodded in agreement, "I agree with Ebony. Just talk to her."

Quartzite nodded in understanding, but started to panic, "But what if I say the wrong thing? What if I fall into the sand and it turns out to be quicksand? What if the tide comes in? What if she's already gone?! What if-"

"Quartzite!" I shouted, cutting him off, "Would you like me to talk to her for you?"

Quartzite nodded, "Please?"

I nodded, "I promise to say nothing to mess up your funky flow."

"Funky Flow?" Pearl and Amethyst repeated in confusion.

"You will do great, Ebony." Garnet encouraged me.

With that, I grabbed the bracelet from the freezer and made my way out of the Temple. I walked along the beach, toward a lonely girl, thinking of what to say to her. As I got close, the ground shook violently, accompanied by a loud whale-like roar. A piece of the temple was about to fall on top of the girl.

I ran and tackled into her, "Watch out!"

I felt something tingle inside me and my gem glowed. In a form of a rose, a rosy pink bubble encased me and the girl. The rubble crashed into the bubble and crumbled into the sand, leaving us unharmed.

I recovered from the tackle and looked at the bubble, "How did I do that?" Then I turned to the girl, "Hello. Are you okay?"

I got a good look at her. The girl was a young Deer faun. Her fur was a light teal color with light blue hooves. Long, black wavy mane and dark brown eyes. She wore a light cream dress with a pastel teal skirt. A pair of rose-tinted glasses.

The faun adjusted her glasses and looked at me, "I'm fine. Who are you?"

"Oh, forgive me." I stood up and helped the faun to her hooves, "My name is Ebony. But you can call me Ebbie, if you like."

"Snowflake." The faun introduced herself, then looked at the bubble, "What happened?"

I scratched the back of my head, "This might be hard to believe, but I'm magic. Well, half-magic, on my mother's side."

Snowflake looked at me, "You did this?"

I nodded, "I guess I did." Then I explained to her, "My little bother, Quartzite, and I are members of the Crystal Gems, we fight monsters and protect humanity from evil."

Snowflake smiled, "Oh, that's kinda like my dad. He's a cop." Then she frowned, "Well, more like a private security guard." She looked at the bubble and asked, "How long does it usually last?"

"Oh, right." I answered.

I closed my eyes and tried to think about making the bubble go away, but I felt nothing and my gem wasn't glowing. What's going on?

Snowflake raised a brow in concern, "What's wrong?"

"My magic kind of has a mind of its own." I explained, "Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't."

Of course! This is a Gem thing. Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst might know how to make this bubble disappear.

I started trying to move the bubble, and start a conversation with Snowflake, "So, I don't see you around that often."

Snowflake joined me, "My dad works for a bunch of different beaches, so we are never in the same place long."

"I can understand." I smile, "I sometimes go on adventures with my guardians, Garnet, Pearl and Amethyst. But, they usually say it's too dangerous for me."

"You always go in a bubble?" Snowflake asked me, once we got moving. Turned out we were blocked by rubble.

I shook my head, "No. This is new to me too. I'm not even sure what this is." Then I assured her, "But, it's okay! My guardians will know how to fix this."

Snowflake and rolled the bubble up the hill toward the Temple, but as we stopped rolling, the bubble rolled back to the foot of the hill. I tried again, but the bubble refused to move.

I shouted as loud as I could, "Hey! We need help! Garnet! Pearl! Amethyst!"

"I don't think they can hear you." Snowflake opinionated, then suggested, "We can just wait here until they come out."

"But, who knows how long that can take." I pointed out, "I suppose we can ask some of my other friends in the city."

*Later, at the Big Donut...*
"Way to go, Ebony!" Swift Wind laughed as he teased me and Sweet Tune tried to break the bubble with a hammer, "Is this your magic love bubble or something? Did you make it because you're in love?"

"I'm 16, Swift Wind. I'm not a kid anymore." I told him, then explained to Snowflake, "That's Swift Wind. He can be a bit of a jerk, but he's a nice guy on the inside."

"He makes weird faces." Snowflake told me with an uncomfortable expression.

I turned to Swift Wind and noticed he was making kissing faces and licking the bubble. Agitated, I walked over and flicked the bubble. The bubble vibrated and kicked Swift Wind off.

Sweet Tune turned to Swift Wind and shouted, "Swift, quit being a jerk and help!"

Swift Wind turned to the stout blonde and argued, "What? I'm helping Ebony on her date."

"You're embarrassing her." Sweet Tune argued back.

"Oh, I'm not!" Swift Wind started shouting, then the two started arguing.

"Swift Wind and Sweet Tune run the Big Donut." I explained to Snowflake.

"Do they get along?" Snowflake asked me.

"They argue a lot, but I think they do." I answered in all honesty.

Sweet Tune sighed and ran into the café, "I'm gonna go try something else."

"Anyway, this place has the best donuts." I told Snowflake, "Quartzite and I come here and hang out here everyday."

"My parents don't let me eat donuts." Snowflake frowned, "They have trans fats."

"Ouch." I winced, "Your parents sound quite sheltered."

"They are." Snowflake nodded.

Sweet Tune suddenly came back, running toward us with a wooden chair. She whacked the chair against the bubble. The chair broke into pieces, but the bubble was undamaged. It was like this bubble was made out of diamond.

"Sorry, Sweet Tune." I apologized. Sweet Tune just shrugged. I looked at Connie, "I think I have a better idea."

*Later, at the Docks...*
Snowflake and I left the Big Donut and arrived at the Docks. Since blunt objects didn't work, maybe something sharp can pop the bubble.

Snowflake smiled as she looked around, "Whoa, a trawler. And a little skipjack!"

I smiled at the young faun, "You seem to know a lot about boats."

Snowflake looked at me, "That's what happens when you hang out at the beach, and don't swim, and don't have friends. Y-You look at boats."

I gave the young Snowflake a concerned look. No friends? Must be very lonely.

Then I saw who I was looking for. I moved the bubble after a young, blonde Uncorn colt in a sailor uniform, "Onion! Onion!"

Onion turned to me and Snowflake, eating a bag of popcorn. I breathed onto the bubble, creating a screen and wrote, 'PRAHS GNIHTEMOS DEEN EW' on the bubble. Onion smiled and gave me a thumbs up. Then he ran off.

"What did you tell him?" Snowflake asked me.

"I told him that we need something sharp to pop the bubble!" I answered.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Snowflake asked in concern, "Can't we just go back to your house?"

"One more try and then we'll go home." I told her.

Suddenly, a foghorn startled me with a squeak. I turned to find that Onion was on a fishing boat and aiming a harpoon gun at us. This isn't what I meant, Onion! Snowflake and I quickly jumped out of the way. Onion fired the harpoon at the bubble. However, the spear bounced off and hit the dark trawler next to us, causing it to sink.

"The trawler..." Snowflake sighed.

*Later that Evening, at Funland...*
"Funland?" Snowflake asked me, as we rolled into Mr. Smiley's Funland.

"Since sharpness and blunt things didn't work, maybe we can use something with enough force to crack the bubble open." I explained, "If this doesn't work, we can go home and get help from the Crystal Gems."

With that, Snowflake and I rolled to the closest roller coaster ride. Snowflake looked very uncertain. So was I. What if this doesn't work? What will happen after we're free?

I was about to tell Snowflake I was having second thoughts, but another violent earthquake forced the bubble onto the rails. We rolled into the carts, then flung into the bottom of the ocean.

Snowflake and I recovered and Snowflake asked, "Where are we?"

I looked around, as I gave her glasses back, "By the looks of it, I think we're at the bottom of the ocean."

Snowflake gasped in a panic, but I assured her, "It's okay!"

"Are we even close to the shore?" She asked, trying to calm down.

I looked above us and mentally measured and calculated, "I believe so."

"Let's start rolling." Snowflake stated.

She and I started rolling the bubble toward the direction of the shore.

"Don't worry, Snowflake." I tried to assure her, "When we get back, the Crystal Gems will definitely know how to help us out. They bubble things all the time."

Suddenly, a large shadow swam over us. Snowflake and I looked and the shadow belonged to a worm, around the same size as a whale.

Snowflake panicked and hid close behind me, but I assured her, "It's alright, Snowflake. Look." I pointed and we watched the worm peacefully eating glowing seaweed, "It only wants to eat the glowing seaweed. Not scary at all."

From its mouth, I noticed a Gem inside. Much like the Centipeedle. The worm roared and dived into the earth. The burrowing caused the earth to crack and Connie and I fell into a trench.

When I recovered, I noticed my hoof in Snowflake's face. I quickly removed it and apologized, "Sorry! Are you all right?" Snowflake didn't answer. She adjusted herself and stood up. "Snowflake, I-"

"No, you're not!" Snowflake snapped at me, "You keep saying you're sorry, but you don't know why anymore. Now we are going to suffocate or starve at the bottom of the ocean." Tears welled up in her eyes, "And only my parents will notice, because no one else cares about me!"

I turned to the crying faun. No one cares about her, but her parents?

"I'm gonna disappear without ever making a single friend." Snowflake finished. She collapsed and started crying into her hands.

I dug into my pockets, and showed Snowflake the glowing pink bracelet I kept in the freezer, "We could be friends!"

Then I admitted with a sad smile, "Quartzite and I saw you at the boardwalk parade last year. You dropped your bracelet. I left my float and picked it up, but then I couldn't find you. So I saved it in the freezer, so it would last longer. In case I saw you again."

Snowflake looked at me and her eyes widened, clear from the tears, "You were the tall one with the pink Unicorn colt on the carwash float."

I nodded, "Yeah. That's Quartzite."

She giggled, "He had soap bubbles in his hair."

I giggled at the memory, "He was supposed to be a scrub brush." Then I frowned, "I'm sorry, Snowflake. And this time, I know why." I put the bracelet around her wrist, "If I'd have returned your bracelet back then, you wouldn't be stuck in this bubble with me now."

Snowflake shook her head at me, "No, it's okay." She regained her smile, "I'm having fun."

I smiled in relief. Suddenly, the bubble finally popped. Snowflake and I held our breath and swam up to the surface to catch it. I couldn't help but smile and laugh over our little adventure. Now, that it's over, what else can we do together?

Hehehe.

Unfortunately, our celebration was cut short, as the worm attacked us. It dived into the water, creating a large wave that washed us into the shore, then it chased after us. I hid Snowflake behind me and glared at the worm.

"Stay away from my friend!" I told the creature.

The worm roared at me, but I stood my ground and took an offensive stance. I grew up watching martial arts movies. Time to show what an visual learner can learn by watching carefully.

The worm dived for me, but I attacked it by kicking its head up. I leaped into the air and grabbed two of the top tentacles. I moved to the back of its head and forced into a submission move. The tightness caused the monster to poof into a mist of clouds and it vanished, just like the Centipeedle. All what was left was its gem.

I landed and walked over to Snowflake, "Snowflake! You alright?"

Snowflake was lost for words.

The four familiar voices shouted in worry, "Ebony/Nora/Ebbie!"

Snowflake and I turned to see Quartzite and the Gems running toward us. Pearl was first to speak, while Garnet sent the worm's gem to the Temple, "Ebony! What's going on? What did you do?"

I struggled to find the words to say, but Snowflake smiled, "It was incredible!"

I turned to the young teal faun, "Really? You mean it?"

Snowflake nodded, "Yeah. You were like a wrestler, or a ninja."

I giggled, then noticed Quartzite blushing. I gestured to my baby brother, "Snowfalke, this is my baby brother, Quartzite."

Snowflake waved, "Hi, Quartzite. I'm Snowflake." She smiled, "Ebony told me a lot of things about you."

Then Amethyst put her hand over my shoulder, "So, are you going to introduce us too?"

"Quartzite and Ebony were so excited to meet you!" Pearl smiled, "Right?"

Quartzite blushed in embarrassment, while I smiled and nodded.

"Hey!" Garnet spoke up, picking Pearl and Amethyst by their shirts, "Don't mess with their funky flow!"

Then she left, leaving Snowflake confused, "Funky flow?"

Quartzite groaned in embarrassment, while I just giggled.

Serious Ebony

Ebony Pie's POV.
"Pay attention, Ebony. This is going to be your first serious mission." Garnet told me, as we were in the Wrap Tunnels, travelling toward the next destination, "You need to be ready."

"I'm ready, Garnet." I answered, then turned to my baby brother, "Quartzite?"

Quartzite quickly nodded, "Yes. I'm ready. I'm so ready!"

But, he was floating upside down. Pearl tried to get him up-right, "Quartzite, come on. You're going to make yourself sick." But she got hit in the face by Quartzite's ukulele, "Why did you bring that?"

Quartzite shrugged his shouldered, "I don't know. I was excited and it's mine and I like it."

The gravity of the warp tunnel caused the ukulele to levitate away from Quartzite's shoulders. He noticed and chased after it.

Pearl noticed and called after him, "Quartzite, get back here! You could get seriously-" We arrived at our destination, "Hurt!"

Quartzite appeared before the warp tunnel vanished into the sky, and grabbed his instrument. He fell into a bush of wild strawberries, covered in strawberry juice. The Gems and I ran up to him, as he got back up to his feet.

"Quartzite, are you-" Pearl about to ask, but Steven assured her, "I'm fine. I'm good. I'm just gooey." He licked his arm and a small group of white butterflies covered him. Quartzite screamed and ran around the area, "Aah, they're in my eyes!"

"They're just butterflies, Quartzite." Garnet assured my best friend, as she gently waved them away.

Quartzite chuckled, "Well, they looked a lot bigger when they were on my eyeballs."

Amethyst and I giggled. "Quartzite, you're a riot." Amethyst smiled.

Pearl turned to Garnet, "I'm suddenly having second thoughts about bringing Quartzite and Ebony on this one."

Garnet 'shh'ed her and smiled at us, "Just look at them." Then she marched ahead, "Now, let's go recover the gemstone."

We walked through the field. Pearl looked around in awe and marvel, "Unbelievable. This was once a gem battlefield. Now it's wild strawberries as far as the eye can see." She smiled and twirled, "Oh, that's what I love about the Earth. Maybe this will be a light mission after all."

I nodded with a smile, "It's beautiful."

Garnet came to a stop. In front of us was a large black pyramid, but was upside down. This isn't good...

"Maybe not." Garnet noted.

She waved her hands and a bubble with a grey pyramid-like gemstone appeared in front of her. Garnet grabbed the stone and insert it into the matching keyhole. The door glowed and opened.

Quartzite smiled, "Whoa!"

We entered the pyramid. Inside looked like another temple. With engravings of Gem writings and pictures of history on the walls. Even Rose Quartz, my mother, was on the walls.

Quartzite gasped in awe, "Whoa!" Then he shouted, "Quartzite's the best!" The temple echoed his words. Quartzite chuckled and blushed, "Why, thank you, temple."

Amethyst nudged him with a smile, "You're a doof."

The Gems, Quartzite and I walked into the temple and Quartzite noticed something in the center. "Hey. What's this thing?" It was a pedestal with a floating pyramid in the position as the temple; Upside down, "It's like a cool, float-y, triangle thing."

"W-whatever it is, you probably shouldn't touch it." Pearl told Quartzite, looking over the images and writing.

But Quartzite got curious and lightly tapped it. The pyramid flipped upright and the temple started shaking.

The rest of us gathered to the center, while Pearl asked Quartzite, "Quartzite! What have we told you about touching magical things?"

"Definitely, always, never do it." Quartzite answered sheepishly.

Suddenly, as if the gravity shifted, the Gems, Quartzite and I fell through a hole in the ceiling and entered another room. The Gems were able to land with ease. Quartzite landed with a thud. And I fell on my butt.

The room grew dark, and torches lit up to reveal the room we landed in lead to multiple rooms.

I started to feel lightheaded and dizzy.

"Looks like we're gonna have to split up." Amethyst noticed.

Pearl clapped her hands, "Right." Then she put her hands over my shoulders, "Ebony and I will stay right here, where it seems to be safe, while you guys go and solve the mystery of this place."

"Wait." Quartzite interjected, "I want to help solve the mystery."

I nodded in agreement, "Me too. I'm really good at solving puzzles."

Amethyst smiled, "Yeah." Then picked him up over her head, "Come on, Quartzite. Let's solve the mystery."

Quartzite cheered, "Yeah! Mystery solvers!"

However, Pearl grabbed him away from the Quartz Pegasus, "Nope. No, no, no, no, no. You two are a disaster waiting to happen."

"Ebony goes with me. And Quartzite goes with Pearl." Garnet spoke up.

Pearl and I looked at our tall Zebra leader, "Really? Are you sure?" I asked.

"But remember this is a serious mission." Garnet reminded us.

I nodded in understanding.

Quartzite nodded, "Understood." Then put his fingers to his temples, "Serious Quartzite-" But was cut off when he noticed Pearl still carrying him, "Pearl, can you put me down?"

Pearl tilted her head, "What?" Then realized, "Oh, yes. Of course."

She put Quartzite down to his feet and and Quartzite straightened himself, "I need to be standing, or else it doesn't work." He explained, then repeated his previous actions, "Serious Quartzite, activate!"

I sighed and followed Garnet to the corridor on our left, as Pearl sighed, "But this could be the teacups all over again."

I froze for a second. That's right. Two weeks ago, the Gems, Quartzite and I went to Funland, to try out the new teacup ride. However, Quartzite got sick and jumped off the ride. His actions caused the ride to break and fall apart. Quartzite is banned for three weeks for the destruction of Funland.

"Hey! I've put that behind me." Quartzite argued, as he took the corridor on their right.

With that, Garnet and I walked through the corridor. Once we reached an empty room, a stone door, with steel bars, closed behind us. The door across glowed and multiple panels glowed white. Two glowed under mine and Garnet's feet.

So far, nothing's happened.

"We need to stay on the glowing panels." Garnet told me.

I nodded in understanding, "Right."

With that, she and I started hopping across the room, stepping only on the glowing panels. Once I was across to the door, I reached my hand to touch the stone door.

However, the room shook violently and I lost my balance. I fell on a non-glowing panel and the room glowed red. Most of the panels, which turned out to be blocks, fell into large pit of fire. The block I stood on moved, as I jumped to grab the closest block to the door.

Unfortunately, my grip was slipping. I heard Garnet call my name in worry, then I lost my grip.

Before I fell into the pit of burning fire, Garnet caught me by my ankle and landed safely on the side of another block.

I smiled in relief, "Thank you, Garnet."

We arrived to the door on the other side and it opened. We quickly entered the next room. The door closed behind us and the room shook again.

I started feel dizzy and lightheaded again. Like the room was spinning or flying in circles.

"We can take a break if you're not feeling well, Ebony." Garnet offered.

I regained myself and shook my head, "Oh, no. I-I'm okay." Then told her, "Let's keep going."

Garnet nodded and we looked around the room.

Garnet looked at the ancient drawings on the walls and turned to me, "You're quite smart, Ebony. What do you think these drawings mean?"

I turned and looked over the drawings. A group of triangles hanging from the ceiling. Almost like...

"SPIKES!" I shouted in alarm.

The room shook again and one of the drawings pressed into the walls. Spikes poked from the ceiling and started dropping toward us.

"Run!" Garnet instructed.

She and I ran down the corridor, trying to avoid the falling spikes. Both Garnet and I were able to make it to the other end with just a few scratches and torn clothes.

"Now, that was a pretty close one." Garnet smiled, as the door opened.

I smiled back with a giggle, "Yeah. That was a pretty close one."

We walked to the next room. The next room looked impossible. Swinging bladed pendulums. Spikes. Lava and fire. All of the trials we faced at once and taken to the next 5 levels. The room shook and I started to feel faint.

"Get ready, Ebony." Garnet told me, "This is gonna be intense."

*Flashback*

"Get ready, Quartzite." Garnet told Quartzite, "This is gonna be intense."

Quartzite nodded with a smile, "I'm ready!"

It was the teacup ride. A ride that involved elevated teacups orbiting a large teapot on a pole. Pearl and Amethyst took a cup, while Garnet, Quartzite and I took another. Garnet was enjoying herself. I was getting dizzy. And Quartzite looked like he was gonna throw up.

Garnet smiled, "This is fun."

Quartzite sighed, "I think- I need to get off this ride now."

With that, Quartzite held his breath and jumped off the ride. Garnet reached after him, "Quartzite, no!"

But Quartzite landed on Mr. Smiley and broke the control panel and the ride went a little crazy. The cups flew everywhere and destroyed half of Funland.

When Quartzite regained consciousness, Mr. Smiley grabbed him by his shirt, "Quartzite, you are banned from all the rides forever!"

*End Flashback*

I opened my eyes with a gasp and found that Garnet and I were on the other side. I quickly looked myself over. Not a scratch or scar on my indigo fur.

"We made it?" I noticed.

Garnet nodded, "You were very quick, Ebony. I didn't know you can float."

I blinked in confusion. Did I black out and acted in my sleep again? That happens with me a lot. Wait. Did Garnet said I floated and was quick? I didn't know I could do that.

I regained my composure and followed Garnet. The corridor led us into a familiar touch-lit room.

"We're back where we started." Garnet noticed.

I rubbed my chin in thought about this puzzle, until Pearl's voice spoke up, "Garnet, there you are!"

We turned to see Pearl and Quartzite. They looked tired.

"The doors and rooms here make no sense. They all bring you back here." Pearl explained.

Just then, Amethyst entered from behind Pearl. She looked around and growled in frustration, "Get me out of here!"

She took the door to her left, as Pearl explained what's going on, "There are 16 doors, and we entered from the Northeast and went through three consecutive rooms in a straight line..."

Amethyst came back with a small bear trap on her head, "Ow!"

She removed the trap and ran back in, while Pearl continued, "But arrived back here out the Southernmost door, which can only mean w-well, I don't know what it means."

Amethyst came back from the left door, frozen in a block of ice.

Pearl panicked, "This is a death trap!" She summoned her spear and started breaking Amethyst out of the ice.

"What?" Quartzite gasped, then turned to Garnet, "What do we do?"

"We go back in again, and again, and again, and again." Garnet answered.

Quartzite shook his head and shouted, "I can't!"

Pearl turned to my baby brother, "Quartzite."

"It's okay." Garnet assured.

Quartzite just shook his head, "No. No, it's not. You were all right about me. I wanted to do this so bad, but now I feel like I'm gonna throw up. This is just like the teacups!"

"Oh, Quartzite." Pearl spoke up with an apologetic look, "I didn't really mean that."

Clarity hit me, "Hold on." I smiled at Quartzite, "Quartzite, you're a genius."

"What did I say?" Quartzite asked me.

"What if this is just like the teacups?" I wondered, "That's why we're getting so lost. That's why I've been feeling so dizzy and fainted. All the rooms are spinning us around so we end up here."

Without a word, Garnet walked to the center of the room, summoned her gauntlets and punched into the ground. Pearl kept me close to her. One last punch and the ground gave in below us. Quartzite, the Gems and I fell and landed on spinning panels and looked at the room. Garnet was able to catch me. Quartzite caught a panel with Amethyst, who was free from the ice block.

I was right. The room was like the teacup ride. The entire room was spinning around a central alter with a Gem in the center.

Pearl smiled, "This is unbelievable." Then used her gem to demonstrate, "This gem-powered mechanism it's manipulating the rooms above. Every room we entered spun us until we came back to the central chamber. It's just like the teacup ride at Funland."

"Ebony already figured that out." Garnet told her.

Pearl blushed and covered her gem in embarrassment, "Oh."

I looked at the central alter and noticed the gem. I turned to Garnet, "Garnet, I need to get off the ride now."

Garnet nodded and grabbed me, "Serious Ebony go!"

She threw me toward the central alter. I grabbed the gem and started pulling it free. The alter reacted and released the gem.

The gem glowed brightly and everything around us began to de-materialize and fly into the gem. The glow shined brighter and overwhelmed the temple. The temple exploded and shattered pieces covered the field of wild strawberries.

Pearl's POV.
Once everything calmed down, I noticed a certain sweet-hearted Earth Pony filly was nowhere to be seen.

"Ebony? Ebony!" I called, then turned to Garnet, "Where is she?"

"Oh, she's over here." Amethyst notified, pointing to a patch of strawberries.

Ebony was unharmed, but covered in strawberry juice.

She opened her eyes and looked at the gem in her hands, "The gem."

I took the gem from her and bubbled it, "I'd say you handled that adventure very well." I smiled, as I sent it back to the temple.

Amethyst nodded and helped Ebony to her feet, "Yeah. Nice job, 'Serious Ebony'."

Garnet walked toward us, holding Quartzite's ukulele, "I prefer 'Regular Ebony'."

Ebony smiled. Quartzite took his instrument from Garnet and tuned it, "Hey! My ukulele."

He started playing his ukulele and sang,

"Oh, that's the end of another day,
It was mighty serious, I'd have to say.
The Crystal Gems looked really cool,
When they made the temple explode-"

However he was cut off by Ebony getting surrounded by the white butterflies. Ebony gasped, "They're in my eyes." But she giggled and smiled, "They tickle."