Steven loved having kids.

As they aged and he did too (at least mentally), and he found new ways to love having kids and love having such diverse, talented children.

His Lucky was brave and soft hearted, Azalea was unstoppable and sharp, Cosmo was intellectual and mature, Celine and Seraphine were total opposites but so incredibly talented in almost anything they did, and Celeste was his little powerhouse that easily had the most power despite being the last baby (he suspected being in his Perfect Form had a lot if not everything to do with that).

He was so proud of his family all the damn time, and he was always filled with joy to see them mingling with the other factions children and parents.

But soon it became apparent that raising children with various powers was a kind of thing he'd only want to spend one lifetime doing, no matter how much he loved them.

*Incident One- Garden Gone Overgrown*

A panicked cry outside and Steven had already flown out the door faster than the other parents could even process the sound. That was his Azalea in peril, and she was his little trouble magnet. When he heard her scream, terror flooded his very soul.

She had just turned nine. Her powers in botany were incredible and, unfortunately, completely out of control.

Four children were caught by a giant golem made from flower stems and roses with sharp thorns: Lucky, Juniper, Leo, and of course, Azalea. The beast had them clutched in its hands as it roared its rage yet pleasantly smelled like a lovely menagerie of nature and roses.

Steven couldn't decide if he wanted to just super size himself and grab the kids, keel over from a joint heartastroke, or see if he could take it down himself.

Behind him he heard one of the dads panicking, then a few of the moms running to gather the rest of the younger children between the thundering stomps the creature made.

It was slow and bulky, it might be easier to push it down and dismantle it with his own powers rather than attempt to fight it while it was holding his family's children.

He grew into his Perfect form, then his Diamond height one after the other, thankful when Connie was one step ahead of him and had cleared space.

Apparently the garden golem took that personally, it croaked lowly at him and charged. "Get ready to tuck and roll! Do you hear me? Tuck and Roll!" He told the kids firmly. Every iota of charm he had in him, he put into his voice to pull them out of their fear. "You can do it! I believe in you."

Steven waited a split second to assure he wouldn't hit the end of the beach and destroy more than he needed to, then super speeded to rock that son of a bitch into raining debris just from the sheer speed and force he hit it at.

The kids fell from a slightly lower distance and Lucky shouted something that must have helped the kids focus better or at least try. He was so proud when they landed mostly okay and helped each other up to run into the arms of their parents.

He turned to check on the mess he'd made and noticed stems reassembling around a pink gem. If he'd had time he would've pulled out his phone to document it, but he'd just have to tell Connie later and show her in a dream. This gem wasn't corrupted, this was a Rose Quartz controlling this creature by threading it together with its light body instead of manifesting its whole body as just a body.

Truthfully he wasn't paying much attention to the slowly growing uprising of gems starting to hate him again, most of it was totally out of his control. They felt abandoned by him the same way they used to feel abandoned by White. He could admit he'd turned down appearing at more than most of the times when it would be nice for him to be around. He just wanted to be there for every new life development in his house and his life. It was so hard to force himself to go to Homeworld and be responsible with his Diamond.

His momentary guilt was brought to a screeching halt when he got the wind knocked out of him and flew back into one of the bluffs. "Dammit, these jeans were so expensive," He complained idly as he observed the tear over his thigh.

It got angrier but Steven summoned his shield and planted his feet hard enough that it flew back and skidded across the sand and a bit into the water. A painfully loud slapping was followed by a torrent of seawater drenching part of the coast and his family watching him fail. He felt another twinge of guilt when a faintly feminine cry of pain could be heard from under the monsters bellow, but he wasn't just protecting his children anymore, he had to worry about his extended kids and his partners too.

When the creature tried to push back up, Steven lifted it with a wall rising from the ground and erected spikes to go through it. Its top-heaviness ended up being its biggest downfall, it couldn't gain enough agency to get back up and Steven was already winding his power down slowly.

He shrunk but stayed levitated to feel the earth around him and the plants that were thick and healthy in the ocean. His power ebbed and flowed around him in what could be considered a gorgeous halo of light if he wasn't so giving irritated. All he wanted was, if it weren't too inconvenient, the plants in the ocean to grow enough to grab onto the beast. His thirties were more dedicated to developing this power and thankfully when the beast was immobile he was able to grab the gem and pull. It burned against his skin hotter with every pull that broke a root but he shouted to exert every last iota of power and a flash of pink was the last thing he remembered.

He woke up groaning with someone dousing him in water and little voices filled with concern slowly becoming less like nonsense.

"Daddy, is Steven gonna die?" Daisy asked Jacob apprehensively.

The man huffed in awe and shock. "I don't think so, Daisy-Maisy."

"I told you you weren't ready to show them your powers," Lucky chastised Azalea. "You can barely control your glow at school."

"I thought it was cool," Juniper replied sassily. "Until it almost killed me."

"It wouldn't have killed you, probably just like..." Azalea trailed off weakly. "I mean it's just a big flower."

Anna was crying in the background into Adam's shoulder by the time Steven opened his eyes. He couldn't quite focus on anything else but the building rage being born inside of him.

Azalea caught his eyes first and went pale as he got up to dust the sand off his clothes and out of his hair. It would take forever to get out of his hair. "Dad, you're okay!" She mumbled with lackluster enthusiasm. "You... looked really cool..."

He took a deep breath and held it for so long the shuffling around him became frequent enough to convey concern. "All of you inside the commons. Now." Azalea started to protest but he thundered, "I said NOW, Azalea!"

They bustled inside and Steven followed after. Someone touched his shoulder but he shook it off, he was so angry he could hardly feel himself existing.

The kids had lined up in order from oldest to youngest and the rest sat on the couches at Steven's request.

He put both hands on his hips and paced a little while he gathered his thoughts into less angry ones. He had to remember he loved his daughter, and he loved his extended children. It was imperative he get his emotions under control before he did something crass, especially with his new developing powers. 

"It was my fault, Dad," Azalea told him earnestly, even taking a step forward. "They had nothing to do with it. I'll just take the punishment."

Steven started chuckling under his breath and couldn't stop until he could tell everyone was beginning to become extremely uncomfortable. "Azalea, you are in so much trouble. I can't even begin to describe to you the sheer amount of PISSED I am right now!" His voice echoed but once the dam creaked the word vomit came bursting out along with his glow. "You have no idea how terrified I was when I got out there to see you kids in the clutches of a monster! I have slaved away to create a safe and secure and normal life for you guys but all you do is look for trouble! You have to be more careful! What if something had happened? What if that thing had killed one of you?" Azalea tried to anger but her stutter was barely heard out acknowledged past a silencing glare. He got quieter at the same look from his wife but he wasn't done. "How do you think that would've made me feel, Azalea?Can you possibly imagine that absolute torture that comes with knowing if you don't get your powers in control you're going to kill one of them, and then I have to take the blame for it? You never think about anyone else but yourself, but you're going to start right now, Azalea." The floor creaked under him and he sighed, brushing more sand out of his hair. "Before you kill one of these innocent kids. I'm not... I can't lose another kid."

Azalea was crying at him but he couldn't find any empathy in his soul. He was exhausted and horrified to no end, he felt like he was going to faint. "Please don't do this again, Z." She shuffled and wiped at her face and he sighed again, this time in resignation. He found himself turning to face toward the window and study the debris he'd have to be cleaning and healing for who knew how long. "I'm going to start sending you to be with the Gems on the weekends."

Connie breathed in to say something but Steven accidentally gave her a furious look and her lips pressed tightly together after she exchanged that look with the polycule. He'd chosen poorly, he'd hear about that from Adam for sure if not all of them. He was big on respectful fights.

"I love you guys," Steven told the kids earnestly. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost any of you. Go on, now. Git."

They dispersed quietly but the parents stayed to stare at Steven until he turned painstakingly. "What?"

Anna wiped at her face with a sniffling laugh. "You're so hard on Azalea and yourself. Give her a break, she's just eccentric."

He ran his hands through his hair and noted his strands had a few greys in it. "She's aging me with her antics. Ugh, and here I thought number two was going to be so easy."

Adam laughed weakly. "Relatable. Are you okay, Steven?"

"Being responsible for this one is causing me ridiculous stress," He groaned. "I mean I was bad but I wasn't this bad. I'm so scared she's gonna kill someone."

He turned to sink into Connie's arms because he knew she'd be silly enough to approach him from behind when he was this anxious. She rubbed at his head tenderly. "I think you worry more than I do. It's hard to raise kids with powers. That's kind of a barrier we're working through right now."

Hazel cleared his throat. "Well, why don't we lead with example?" When they looked confused he elaborated with, "Well... we've been talking about introducing Pluto. Now might be a good time to expose the kids, especially Azalea and Cosmo, to him."

Adam tipped his head and got up, putting a finger to his lips and swinging open the door to Steven's house. There little Azalea sat with wide eyes. "I don't think Azalea is ready," He said to her. "I don't think she's reached that level of maturity."

Steven agreed and Azalea was on house arrest for two entire months. He spent the time teaching her to control her plant magic and assumed that was that.

*Incident Two: Mourning Song*

Steven tended to notice when something was off with his polycule, he was just a noticer and a muser.

So when he noticed them crying and zombie walking, it was definitely strange enough for him to say something. "Are you guys okay?" For a second he thought it was the anniversary of Abel's death and was struck with another heavy dose of mourning. None of them had ever known suicide could be so painful, Adam had been a well of understanding and patience as they grieved him for months of non activity.

Now he wanted to cry too, their orange stripe in their rainbow was gone.

Jacob walked past him and he grabbed him to shake. "Hello?" He tapped into his charmspeak and held his face. "Jacob, can you tell me what's wrong?"

"I'm not like anybody else," He muttered tearfully, eyes aglow and distant. "Don't you hear the music?"

He let him go and followed Jasmin into his house, she was crying a little harder as she got closer to the voice Steven could now hear. Daisy and Phoebe were just now joining Seraphine, Celine, Lucky, Azalea, Milo, Jack and Astro.

Cosmo was singing a song he'd never heard of before in another one of his obviously alt outfits with his headphones in to hear the guitar and his voice. He was facing away from the door, slumped into his gaming chair with his eyes closed.

"I'm a little O D D
Most people really don't get me
I'm the boy in the black of the class
Blank stare, don't care, don't ask
I'm a little O D D
I see the way they look at me
I can hear it when they talk that trash
Sayin 'Any minute he's gon crack.'"

Steven felt the song pulling at his own heartstrings and realized he was crying too now. His son had the most pristine, gorgeous voice and amazing range just like he did. He thought Cosmo was even more talented than he was. But with his music magic and charmspeak mixing into one potent and devastating power, sometimes it got out of control.

Steven found his voice finally. "Cosmo!"

He didn't hear him, but he sniffled between lines as he strummed his guitar in a hypnotic way. "Cosmo!"

He yelled it sharp enough that it must have gotten through his noise cancelling headphones. Sometimes Cosmo got overstimulated and had meltdowns, the doctors suspected it had something to do with absorbing some of his twin's magic and being a premie. Then they found out it was just Asperger's syndrome as more symptoms like hyperfixation, inability to handle changes in his routine, and the way he spoke came to light.

Cosmo frowned deeply and swept his gaze over everyone. "Did someone die?"

Connie chuckled weakly and got up to pull him into a hug. "No. You were singing and we thought maybe we needed to check on you."

Cosmo observed Adam curled up on Hazels lap crying so hard he was wheezing as some started departing awkwardly with their parents. "I'm sorry."

Steven left it to Connie this time and followed Hazel and Adam. "I'm so sorry. I'll try to keep it to a minimum."

Adam sat up and shook his head. His eyes were bloodshot and his cheeks were blotchy but he gave Steven a protective stare. "Tell that kid to never stop singing. Ever. He's talented... he just needs to learn how it affects other people."

Steven gave them both a grateful smile when Hazel nodded. "Okay. Thank you. Again, I'm so sorry about this."

*Incident Three: Lexie*

Fusion.

Steven hadn't really sat down and actually thought about fusion since he and Connie had fused at Nova for the first time in years, and then maybe once or twice with the polycule to figure out how his powers manifested differently.

And now he was staring at one of his twins fused with what he assumed to be Jack as one person with a ton of mixed feelings and a lot of confusion. "Hey... what's..?" He cleared his throat and squatted to be eye level to the new fusion. "What's your name?"

They shuffled thoughtfully and then smiled really big. Their two front teeth were missing and it was absolutely adorable. "My name is Lexie! I like that name."

He grunted awkwardly and extended a hand. "Do you feel comfortable coming with me to show you to Jacks parents?" They nodded, so they walked hand in hand but slowly, they were trying to figure out how to take even steps still. "So... how did this happen?"

Lexie stopped entirely. "We were coloring, and I— Uhm..."

They started to look confused and apprehensive, so Steven smiled warmly. "It's okay, get your thoughts together. Take your time."

Jacob was dozing on the couch entangled in Adam's arms and lying all the way on top of him. It was so cute, Jacob was just so clingy sometimes and Steven loved it. Clearly so did Adam. He was rubbing his back and kissing his head murmuring, "My big baby." A kiss to his temple as Jacob whined, but with content. "Te amo, Jack."

As expected of the energy sensing man, Jacob's eyes opened almost immediately when Steven found movement again. "Steven. How do you do? Come snuggle."

He huffed out a tiny laugh. "Later. First..." He moved Lexie in front of him and signed for them not to react too strongly. "This is Lexie. She's a fusion."

Adam's eyes opened and he sat up with Jacob with wide, disbelieving eyes. "Okay... of whom?"

"Jack and Celine, I think," Steven mumbled shyly. "I didn't know my kids could fuse."

Jacob smiled and started blinking tears out of his eyes. "Wow. You're just darling, Lexie. Welcome to the world."

"How did you happen?" Adam asked carefully. "And how are you feeling?"

Lexie giggled and started bouncing on her toes a little. "Like I wanna go outside and play! Uhm... we were coloring and Celine made a picture for her Daddy, but then she messed up and got sad, so Jack gave her a big hug. And then Steven was there. And me."

Steven rubbed at him temples as yet another tension headache set in. "Do you guys know how to unfuse?"

Lexie disappeared instantly into Jack hugging Celine.

All three of the father's jaws dropped so far it was hard to get them closed again.

Jack let go and turned to his father's with triumphant eyes. "I made Celine feel better, just like you guys do to each other."

Steven blanched. "Oh my god."

Adam sent him a sharp look. "That's so good, you're a great friend, Jack."

"Do you need a hug, Celine?" Jacob asked. She nodded and melted into his arms, then tagged Jack and off they went like nothing happened.

Steven just stared at the floor in embarrassment as his head throbbed with pain. His kids exposing the other kids to powers and magic sometimes made him feel like all he did was add an extra struggle to the eternal struggle that was being a parent.

"Steven?"

He sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm trying to keep it under control but watching six kids is really hard sometimes."

Adam got up to wipe away at his tears and hold his face. "Your kids know you're embarrassed of them."

He erupted in a glow. "What?! That's not true!"

"Sometimes you really act like it, Steven," A new voice from behind him said. Jasmin was munching on a freshly grown carrot but pointed the end at him. "Azalea told me sometimes they think you're embarrassed of them."

Steven sat and started to cry. "S-someone grab Connie, please."

Jasmin went off and Steven laid back to have the seventh panic attack of the month. Jacob and Adam knew what to do, and Adam called Hazel to come and walk him through it while they cut off his shirt and went through the process of keeping him from exploding.

Connie rubbed at his hair thoughtfully. "I know you're going to say no, but I'm working on not being a coward for the sake of our relationship to each other and the polycule. Can you hear me?" Steven nodded a little. "I think we should talk to the Gems. We should have family therapy, I think you and Azalea especially would benefit a lot."

After that moment, Steven dedicated the rest of his parenthood to fixing that issue of being ashamed of that part of his life. It was hard, but he swore that one act of bravery his wife displayed saved his relationship with their children.