History

Pre-Canon

Jade was the final clone of the organization's lapis study project. Amongst the rest of the subjects, he was the only one whose lapis turned out right. With a perfect replica of MZD's white heart, he lived under high expectations. He could save the project entirely. If he could become a vessel for the Original Lapis, he would prove his "father" right. Perhaps as an omen of the misfortune he would face, he was the 13th test subject made.

While he was regarded higher than the rest of the subjects, that didn't change his view on them. To Jade, they were all his older siblings and he wouldn't trade them for the world. The ones he was closest with were Black and Cherumin. With Black in particular, the two were inseparable. They would often be there while the other was experimented on so it was less scary. He hoped that when they all escaped the labs, they'd be friends forever.

Jade was and still is a sickly child. He was often under the supervision of the head doctor, Weiss. Despite Jadeite being his biological father, he wished he was his dad instead. The doctor frequently fought for him not to be experimented on and actually treated him like a person. He was kind, unlike a lot of staff. The child had once told the doctor that once he became a vessel, he'd make sure he'd go to heaven. And yet, he looked distraught upon hearing that. That's what he was supposed to do, so why was Weiss sad?

One day while wandering the labs, he came across his older brother. Black seemed to be terrified of something. Upon asking them what was wrong, all they did was hug him and tell him everything would be alright. Innocently, Jade tried comforting them. Everything would be okay if they had each other, after all! They'd make it out one day and get to see what the world was like. But, Black's grip on him just tightened as they didn't say a word.

The next morning, Jade's dream came true. With a loud bang, the entrance to the lab was reduced to rubble. Led by Weiss and a woman he'd never seen before, the kids began to rush out of the labs. Watching everything with bright eyes, he thought of all the things he'd do after all of this. He couldn't wait to finally pet a cat or enjoy a warm spring day. He began laughing as he dashed towards the exit. He could finally live!

But, he felt someone grabbing onto his arm hard enough to bruise.

Turning around, he saw Jadeite glaring at him. Any joy he had felt was soon replaced with nothing but dread. As much as he tried to struggle, Jade was dragged away from his freedom. Ripped away from his family of choice, he had to watch as everyone left without him. He was left with his supposed father, someone who was clearly not happy with him for trying to get away.

Sunny Park Era

What followed were events Jade would be haunted by. Left the only test subject with nobody there to protect him, he went through things nobody should have to. As much as Jadeite claimed to have loved him and that this was for his own good, everything he did said otherwise. He stopped speaking as a result of the trauma. His health, both physical and mental, declined rapidly.

There was one thing that kept him going, however. The other kids didn't forget about him, he was sure of it. Jade hoped they would find him some day and come back for him. It was either that or he could become a vessel. He tried convincing himself this suffering was temporary. That was the one thing he believed out of his "father's" mouth, even if it was just to keep himself from losing hope entirely.

In summer though, that day would finally come. Late one night, a loud crashing sound woke Jade up. Going to investigate, he discovered The Original Lapis floating in the middle of the room. After a year of suffering, it faced the deity he learned so much about from Jadeite. It greeted him so kindly.

As they spoke with each other, Jade looked up at the stars for the first time. It made him realize just how small his world was. Resting his head onto it, the child asked if Lapis got lonely. Just as he guessed, it felt that way too. He listened to it explain how Lapistoria was made, and then it was left behind by its creator. Finding himself empathizing heavily with the rock, he told it he hoped they would be able to meet again.

Shortly after, Lapis had asked if he wanted to leave the lab and become a vessel for it. While he knew he was made for this, it still made him happy. Before the possession began, he hugged the crystal and said that they'd be friends forever. He remained calm as he watched his lapis become one with the Original Lapis. Holding it in his hands, it now was the same shape and size of his old one. Jade had been preparing for this moment his whole life.

Lapistoria Era

But, something went wrong. As soon as the deity accessed his memories, he felt their body begin to panic and grow crystals rapidly. What he had to go through daily proved to be too horrifying, too incomprehensible to it. While he tried calming it down, he soon lost consciousness from the strain it had on their body. When he awoke the next morning, he realized the blood of his father was on their hands. Frightened by the scene before him, he made Lapis promise not to hurt anyone else.

After the deity set ground rules for Jadeite, Jade asked it if they could go outside. It happily obliged. The duo stumbled out of the principal's office, making their way up the stairs to the school's roof. Opening up the door, he took his first steps outside. A bright new world was open to him now, for him to explore and enjoy. He and the deity would sit down and watch the clouds, just taking it all in. A quiet, summer morning.

Jade and Lapis would have a harmonious relationship at the start. They had big plans, both in becoming god and with their newfound job as the school's chairman. The first of those plans being to cut his hair short and present how he wanted. The deity had told him about prior vessels who were like him and was supportive in regards to his transition.

In between their shifts, the two would frequently wander the town and come home late. During their excursions, the boy would learn about the outside world and the little joys of life. For once in his life, he felt free to do as he wanted. Once he found the other lab kids, then life would be perfect. He would also play pop'n with others, not thinking much about the lapis pollution that followed.

However, their friendship didn't fill the emptiness left behind. Lapis's resentment towards MZD grew and Jade still missed the other kids. While it had agreed to help him find the other test subjects, very few of them stayed in Lapistoria. They were able to leave the world of hurt behind, while he and Lapis were stuck there. In an attempt to help its host, the deity remembered that he technically did have biological siblings it could introduce him to. Ones who attended the academy.

Lapis's methods would take a turn for the worse, however. It would make Nia and Toa play the role of older sibling by force, involving them with its goals. This would be the first of several things Jade found himself questioning if it was right. It was only an emotionless mimicry of what he used to have, so it did little to help him feel better. If anything, it was a reminder of what he lost. It's just not the same if they're not smiling back.

After trapping Rinka, Jade got the courage to tell Lapis his opinions. He didn't like the idea of putting her in a dark, lonely place like that. It reminded him of bad places and bad memories. The deity reassured him it would only be temporary. She needed to stay out of the way of their plans, but she'd come right back once it was all over. As much as he wanted to argue it more, he still had faith in it.

They would continue playing pop'n with others, as Jade's doubts grew. One day, it seemed like they finally found another kid from the labs. However, he was seemingly mistaken. Upon calling out the name he knew, Gerhard was just confused. While they still played pop'n together and went their own ways, it made the vessel question everything. Unaware of the demon's circumstances, he tried telling himself he just looked similar. The rest of the kids wouldn't forget about him... right?

As they wandered the woods in thought, they came across one of the lapis purifiers. In the midst of watching him, Lapis told its host that it was going to show him something.

In a moment, the forest caught ablaze as Retsu's screams became deafening. He went on a rampage, the stench of burning wood filling the air. Jade watched in horror, and yet their body kept laughing. Even worse, he realized Lapis had taken full control of their body. As much as he begged the deity to stop, it refused to listen to him. The accumulated pollution had taken its toll on the Original Lapis. It had broken their promise.

Once Fuga had stopped the rampage, Jade still couldn't reclaim control over the body. Black was right there, and he couldn't do a thing. Asking it why, it simply said they were at the end of its plans. Giving him an apology for "where we are going", it transported him and the rest of the group to those labs. In spite of how badly he was panicking, the host kept clinging onto consciousness.

It was there Lapis had made a fatal mistake. Upon talking with Black, it went back on the first promise it made to its host. Instead of letting Jade reunite with his brother, it let its own resentment take over and acted cruelly towards them. They didn't even recognize him. As he was forced to watch, the actions the deity took reminded him of his "father." It had grown increasingly cruel and manipulative. Even he wasn't exempt from this side of it at this point. It was becoming the very person he swore to never be.

There were some means the ends could never justify.

With newfound clarity, he realized how he was being treated wasn't right. The friend who was kind and encouraged him to be himself was long gone. In their shared head, Jade told the deity how he felt. This wasn't right! He was sick of it hurting people! He never WANTED this! Lapis said it was going to find the rest of the kids and it does THIS? The deity's attempts to calm him down only made him more upset. As their body kept sprouting crystals, he declared they weren't friends anymore.

In a blaze of glory, Jade was separated from the deity by Retsu. Maybe, this could purify the accursed fate he was born with. As his father scolded him, he couldn't deny the truth. He was being used, like he had been his whole life. Where could he even go from here? Would he just have to resign himself to this? He smiled bitterly as he passed out from the strain, hoping this was all some bad dream.

When Jade awoke, he was heavily dissociated and would stay that way for the rest of the events. Just like old times, Weiss was overseeing his health again. In spite of everything, he made sure to stay by the child's side. Finally, Jade finally understood why he always looked so sad back then. Taking a glance at Black, their expression wasn't angry anymore. No, it was just shock on their face.

Watching Lapis's life fade was a strange experience for him. In spite of how their friendship ended, Jade mourned it. If it wasn't for the deity, he would still be at that lab. Maybe in a different timeline, things could have been okay. As Nia sent everyone back, he raced for the exit. He promised Lapis they'd be friends forever, and the least he could do was stick by its side to the bitter end of this world. At least, that's how he viewed it.

However, he couldn't keep that promise. Jade awoke in the Pop'n World alone, beneath a tree. His attempts to run away only resulted in him being far away from the rest of the group. Left alone with his thoughts for the first time in a while, he reflected on what happened. What transpired left him jaded and feeling defeated. He berated himself for expecting anything different and just waited. His "father" must have been looking for him.

His reflection was cut off by a familiar voice called his name. Looking up, he saw his long lost brother. He stared at them and braced himself, figuring they were still (rightfully) angry. And yet, all they did was embrace him and confess they didn't expect him to still be alive. They apologized for not recognizing him. Despite the time apart, Black still spoke the same way when they were trying to keep a brave face.

They... They didn't forget about him.

Struck with catharsis, Jade began to bawl and hugged back tightly. He apologized between sobs, even though Black couldn't bring themself to blame him. Not after everything that happened. Second chances were not given to everyone, but he was one of the lucky exceptions. They had the chance to meet each other again and he wouldn't squander this. He considered it a miracle.

Post-Canon

Once Jade had calmed down a bit, they began to catch up. He opted to not go into details of what happened during the first year apart, but the fact he was scared about returning said enough. Also during the conversation, the ex-host talked about what being possessed was like and came out to Black in the process. To his surprise, they also realized they weren't cisgender in their time apart.

Eventually, MZD found them sitting under the tree. He returned their lapises, with Jade declining the offer to get a different one. Once they met back up with Weiss and Elenoa, he received the best news he could have possibly gotten: Jadeite had lost custody of him and got arrested for child abuse. Even if that wasn't exactly the truth, what mattered is he wouldn't have to be a test subject anymore.

Of course, that also meant Jade no longer had a guardian. As the group discussed this, Weiss had given him an offer that felt like a dream come true. He asked if the child would be okay with getting adopted by him and Elenoa, given their past together. Plus, him and Black could officially be brothers now. Jade didn't need to think about it. He happily accepted, giving the doctor a hug. At long last, he finally had a place to call home.

From there, Jade would learn that the world could be such a kind place. In spite of everything, the people involved with the Lapistoria incident treated him like a friend instead of the enemy he used to be. The Tsugidoka would include him in hangouts Black would attend, while Mimi and Nyami often invited him to pop'n events. Even Nia and Toa, who he figured would want to stay away from him, considered him their younger brother.

Jade struggled to understand it, still blaming himself at least partially for what happened. How could he get off so easily for genuinely bad things? Weiss understood the guilt of it all well and helped him with processing that. He also found some peace in "atoning" by helping MZD run the school until they found a replacement principal. He was the one who knew to handle the school's finances and paperwork best as part of his old chairman duties, after all. They've been getting along.

Bonus HCs

Webmaster's Comments

During the making of this site, the Pop'n Music location test happened. Ever since I got into these characters 10 years ago almost on the date, I had hoped that one day, Jade would get a new animation set where he wasn't possessed. Having that day come is kind of surreal.