Connie brings Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst with her. All of them are worried about Steven, especially when they find visitors from a far-away galaxy are in the Beach House. Chelli seems to subside their worries, for now, while Peridot wonders where their ship as she can't find it, questioning their entire story… what lies ahead is up to these new visitors and original inhabitants, the connections between them, and the friendships that will be formed in the process...
We get back to the present. Steven wanted to ask more questions. When he entered the Beach House, he saw his favorite three Gems inside, standing next to Connie and Peridot. They had a look of concern on their faces. Steven sighed. He had hoped to not bring them into this mess. He guessed that Connie had contacted them and he couldn't blame her. After all, although she had implied that the other Crystal Gems shouldn't be involved, he hadn't said it directly.
"Steven, we are worried about you...after what Connie told us," Pearl began. She was cut off when she observed the five individuals behind him. They looked very peculiar. They didn't appear to be Gem warriors like her. She wasn't entirely sure they were all humans, either. Garnet and Amethyst looked at all of them inquisitively too.
Chelli extended her hand in a friendly way, at Apta's urging. She would rather have booked out of there. Apta held her hand tightly, since she was a little afraid, especially when looking at Garnet, as she looked a bit imposing. In reality, Garnet could pack a tough punch, but she also was very loving, with Steven. She served as a mother-of-sorts, or more of a guardian. The two Gem beings within her, Ruby and Sapphire, deeply loved one another.
"Sorry for the trouble, Misses...I'm Doctor Aphra...and this is my crew, including my wonderful girlfriend, Entrapta, with the hair-hands...and we like to fuck shit up."
The last part slipped out accidentally. She hadn't meant to say it. She was a lesbian disaster after all, so what would you expect? As she tried to correct herself, and Apta came in to her aid. She felt she had to. There was a benefit to her: she could have wild (and consensual) horizontal refreshment with her that night. So, why not help her out?
"What my dear Chelli meant was...we are on an intergalactic mission to visit other worlds...she just said the wrong thing...nice to meet...you ladies."
Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst weren't sure what to make of these visitors. They were odd, to say the least. Could they be totally trustworthy? Was it right to believe what they had to say? They decided to put those thoughts aside and to welcome them with open arms. They wanted to assume good faith. Wasn't that the proper thing to do? They thought so.
They appreciated that this woman, who was named 'Entrapta,' a name which they found curious. It seemed to be named after someone who traps, catches, deceives, or tricks someone into difficulty, or a trap itself. In this way, she shared some similarities to the trap-loving blond-haired young man in another dimension, even though they had never met.
Peridot interjected right then, stopping anyone else from adding anything. These visitors from the cosmos, as they had described themselves, had come there because their ship crash-landed here, right? She was skeptical because she had looked around the Prime Kindergarten and did not locate the ship, even with her technology.
"Where is your ship? I couldn't locate it...are you really from another planet?"
Apta chuckled. Was the technology on this planet this primitive? Could it not locate a spaceship that was cloaked? They really were behind the times, for sure.
"Oh, I'll show you where it is...I'm surprised you couldn't pick it up. We only camouflaged it and made it look invisible…"
Peridot was surprised. What Apta was saying seemed completely believable. She had to see it herself. She would have to update her technology in case outer space visitors like this came in the future. She couldn't let there be a slip-up like this again. She had to do better. She must do better. She was willing to go with them to their ship. Perhaps it would help her become an even better technician.
She quickly grabbed Apta's hand. What she did not expect was that someone else grabbed Apta's other hand: the brown-haired, and tan-skinned, woman, with a leather helmet and goggles which looked like it was from some '40s bombardier.
"I'd like to come too, since I built the ship with her," Chelli remarked. Apta nodded. Peridot was still a little wary of her, considering what she had done, that day alone, including conducting a coup to take over as captain of her ship and firing a blaster into the ceiling. If Apta was there then...maybe it would be...fine? She hoped that was the case.
Peridot, looking at Chelli, realized she didn't have much choice in this. She guessed that if she said no, then Apta wouldn't come along. And these space visitors would stay around longer. She only barely tolerated them despite the fact that she had come from Homeworld and wasn't even native to Earth! She had come to regard the latter as her home.
"Fine. You can both come." She grabbed Chelli's other hand and she used the warp pad to bring them to the Prime Kindergarten. Steven nor Connie, Pearl, Garnet, or Amethyst had any reason to go back there, at least not now. It was still a scary place in many ways.
As they left, Steven had a brilliant idea. They could split off into specific groups so they could get to know each other better. He also introduced each of his Gem guardians. The other visitors introduced themselves as well. To Bow, Glimmer, Adora, and Catra this seemed to be a good idea. Connie, Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst were keen on it as well.
"Ok, I'll go with Garnet," Glimmer began, and added, "since she seems like the leader here." Garnet was glad to hear that. Some people had falsely thought Steven headed the Crystal Gems. Nothing could be further from the truth. He did not and he never had.
While Bow wanted to come along with her, she decided against it. That left Pearl, Connie, Amethyst, and Steven. He quickly made his choice. It seemed like the right one.
"I'd like to be with Steven for...certain reasons." Adora and Catra guessed why. Pearl, Connie, and Amethyst came to the same conclusion. He probably wanted to be with another man. Bow had no issues talking to women… sometimes it's best to be someone of your own gender rather than of the female persuasion.
As they left, Amethyst, Connie, and Pearl remained. They decided to go into Pearl's room which had been retrofitted to have a sitting area. This was a new addition meant to accommodate guests in times like this. As Adora and Catra followed behind, stepping into the room, they were amazed. They didn't expect Connie to ask the first question.
"So are you two in a relationship or something?...I see you glancing at each other a lot and holding hands...sorry if that's rude to ask."
Catra attempted to say something. Adora nodded, which she took as the indication that she would answer the question instead. Catra was fine with that. As she began to speak, she firmly held onto Catra's hand, refusing to let go.
"Yeah, she's my lovely girlfriend...we got together after we kissed and saved the universe from evil...that's just how it goes."
This couldn't have been more mortifying for Catra. Did she have to explain it that way? She attempted to explain it in her own way without getting into too many of the details. She took a deep breath and made her best attempt.
"Sure, Adora is right...it was just something we needed to do...she's my childhood friend...and we've been through a lot together...and are still figuring it all out."
Connie could somewhat understand what they meant. Her relationship with Steven was just as deep as theirs, and Pearl similarly understood since she had a long-running romance with Rose Quartz, the alias of one of the Diamond rulers, Pink Diamond. At her request, she kept the latter secret and even let people think Pink was dead so that they could live free. It worked. Maintaining the lie had many consequences.
Amethyst didn't really get it in the same way as she never had that sort of relationship with everyone. She had some close friendships, but nothing like a kiss that saved the universe. So she didn't understand what that was like. In human terms she would probably be described as aromantic, asexual, or somewhere in-between. She wasn't sure those words applied to her. She had her own way of describing herself, instead.
"Sounds great...nice to meet you both...I'm going to do my own thing." As she departed, Adora was a little sad that she had to go, while Catra was indifferent. After she left, Pearl joked about it. She didn't want to embarrass Amethyst, but she tried to approach it in a lighthearted way, although she wasn't always the best with this kind of thing.
"Amethyst just likes to be on her own sometimes...that's just what she does." Pearl was about to leave. Adora decided to follow her, after she praised her on her outfit. While Pearl wasn't sure what to say in response and blushed, they got to talking and they realized their commonalities: they both liked organizing things. This served as something which brought them both together. As the night went on, they kept chatting.
At the same time, Connie decided to talk with Catra, who was refusing to go in the watery part of Pearl's room, as someone who detested water. Many cats were like that in real life, either hating water or being bathed. Despite this, they were fine with cleaning themselves with their own tongues. Even someone touching a cat with a wet hand could be an extra annoyance.
So, "Catra...are you like a cat...or a girl? I don't get this whole thing…"
Catra tried to explain it the best she could. No one had asked about it as pointedly before. She was willing to try and explain herself, this time. She felt she owed her an explanation.
"Well, I'm cat-like, as I come from a feline race...but I am a young woman, not a 'girl,' so I'd call myself a cat woman, rather than a cat girl."
Connie laughed. She had some familiarity with cat-like creatures from anime she had watched with Steven and series she'd watched on her own. She pulled out her phone and went to the photo gallery. She opened a folder which was aptly named "catgirls."
"I'm a bit embarrassed to say it...I have this whole collection of images of... catgirls, I mean cat women, from my favorite shows...would you like to take a look?"
Catra was unsure what to say. Did she really want to see it? What was this glowing box...how did it even work? Etheria had touch-pads and other devices. They had nothing like the device that Connie had in her hand. If they did, it would have required launching of satellites and other technology. That would have taken a long time to implement.
"Uh...I guess...how do this work?"
Connie showed her how the cell phone worked and what she could do to move from image to image. Catra found it amazing. How could so much information be stored in such a small place? It seemed almost unbelievable to her in one sense. At the same time, she could imagine Apta building something like it. She almost shuttered at the idea, as she thought about what it would be used for.
As she skimmed through Connie's photos, she saw images of these digital 'catgirls' who looked their best. None of them looked as great as her, in her view. That is until she came across one with striking features and a somewhat revealing, and form-fitting outfit. She turned the phone toward Connie, who chuckled. Of course she would stop on that one.
"Oh that's one of my favorite characters. She's Blake Belladonna and she's a faunus, an animal-like creature in this series I like, and she kissed a blond-haired warrior named Yang Xiao Long in the last volume/season…it really was the most glorious thing. Bumbleby all the way!"
Catra wasn't sure what Connie was so excited about, so she shrugged. Why was she so invested in such a character? And what did "Bumbleby" mean anyway? She had so many questions. She would not put up with someone acting better than her. When she tabbed over with her thumb, she saw a picture of Yang and Blake kissing, annoying her.
Giving the phone back to Connie, she declared, loudly, "these two are cute...sure, but nothing can beat my amazing kiss with Adora...nothing in the universe can compare." Adora didn't hear her because she was too engrossed in her conversation with Pearl. However, Connie heard it loud and clear. She hadn't meant for an image to be a threat. She tried to tell Catra that it was fine and she didn't have to worry. Somehow she calmed her down.
Meanwhile, in another room, Bow and Steven were awkwardly sitting next to one another. They were unsure what to say to each other, until Steven decided to break the ice. He didn't want there to be this tension between them. It didn't feel right. "So, what's it like traveling through space? I tried it once before...and it was pretty terrifying...I don't know how you experienced it…"
Bow listened carefully. He could see that Steven was trying, his best, to connect with him and he appreciated that, as someone who liked to listen to others and hear what they had to say. He found that doing the latter was important when building friendships with other people.
"Yes...it can be scary…at times," Bow began. However, he couldn't only say that. And it wouldn't be entirely accurate either. Space travel wasn't all bad. "Experiencing it…with my friends and partner...helps…it isn't something I do alone...that makes it enjoyable, despite the chaos."
Steven was a bit glad to hear this, although he had only gone on a few space journeys himself, all of which were harrowing for one reason or another. He found a similarity with Bow.
"I'm glad I'm not alone with that. If I could help it...I'd like to stay grounded, here on Earth. I don't really see much of a point to explore the universe, when there's so much I haven't seen here."
Bow understood what he was saying. Even so, she found it a little sad. How could someone not want to go to space? He found this very disconcerting. He tried to convince Steven otherwise.
"There's so much to see in space!...you get to see so much...you are missing out, man."
Steven shook his head. He wouldn't be convinced otherwise. They continued chattering through the night. Everyone started to fall asleep, wherever they were, whether Connie, Catra, Adora, and Pearl in the same room, Amethyst and Garnet in their own rooms, Chelli with Apta on the Darla Angel, with Peridot in a different place. While they would have anxiously awaited the day ahead, they almost all welcomed it, in some ways. Steven had wanted to bring them to the settlement of Little Homeworld and around Beach City. However, he worried that if one worried town resident reported them, it could lead to a whole heap of trouble, so he decided to not do so.
By the early morning, everyone had gotten up and eaten breakfast. Near the Prime Kindergarten, Chelli and Apta were still lounging on the Darla Angel, snuggling with one another. They were rustled out of bed when the proximity sensors went off. Chelli looked at her viewscreen. She could see that people approaching. She did not want people to see them like this. She tussled Apta's hair, telling her to get up, and quickly got dressed. While drowsy, Apta complied. Sometimes Chelli could be forceful, but she didn't mind that, since Chelli always cared about her. That was the type of woman she was.
A few minutes later, Chelli lowered the ship's ramp, and bowed. "Welcome all, to the wonderful Darla Angel." As she continued bowing, they began to walk up the ramp. She led them to the main dining hall of the ship, if it could be called that, where they ate together. Somehow they all squeezed in there.
"We just wanted to wish you a good journey," Steven began. He handed over a gift. Chelli wasn't sure what it was. It looked like some sort of food. Connie explained it was called "chocolate" and said it was very tasty. Peridot had her own present too. She handed them a communicator she had been working on. She said it could work across universes, although it had never been fully tested. Apta grabbed it and stuck it in her pocket.
Bow, Adora, Catra, Glimmer, and Entrapta said their goodbyes to the new friends they had made on Earth. As they walked down the ramp, and back to the planet's surface, Pearl shouted, "come by any time! You are welcome!" With the crew getting to their positions within the ship, Chelli pressed a button. She lifted up the ramp and waved out the window. They saw her and waved back.
The Darla Angel jettisoned off the ground with a huge blast, sending dust and sand everywhere, even in the faces of their new friends. This was just how Chelli did it. Perhaps she had done it purpose, to show her dominance. In any case, they were off to a new place, to meet new people, continuing their sapphic escapade through the stars.