As Steven made his way home, night had already settled over Beach City. The distant lights of the boardwalk seemed quieter than usual, as if even the world knew it was time to slow down. Only one day remained until Connie returned, and that had been making him restless since morning. It wasn't a bad kind of nervousness, but rather a constant energy that wouldn't let him sit still.
He had spent most of the day collecting fruit, food, and small gifts that he knew Connie would like. Simple things, but thoughtful. He had even managed to find a rather old gold coin, heavy in the palm of his hand, with a gleam that seemed otherworldly. His dad hadn't wanted it when Steven showed it to him, for some reason he hadn't quite explained, but Steven thought that maybe Connie would like it. Or at least find it interesting.
But that would be tomorrow's problem for Steven.
Now he was tired.
Back in his room, he sank down onto his bed with a long sigh. Lapis lay fast asleep beside him, taking up more space than necessary, her phone still on and so hot it was practically radiating heat. Steven glanced at her for a few seconds before shaking his head.
Carefully, he picked up the phone and moved it away before it exploded or, worse, burned his foot in the middle of the night. He left it charging elsewhere and lay back down, staring at the ceiling as the silence returned.
His mind, however, wouldn't shut up.
He had finished with the Cluster. That was no small feat. He hadn't destroyed it, he hadn't ignored it. He had listened to it. Thinking about it still made him feel a pang in his chest. He was also helping Peridot, who had decided to stay at the farm because, according to her, it was closer to her natural habitat. Steven wasn't entirely convinced, but seeing her there peacefully gave him some peace.
Amethyst was with her almost all the time. The two got along surprisingly well, to the point of becoming inseparable. Steven smiled slightly as he remembered them criticizing Pearl with such absurd exaggeration that it was impossible to take them seriously.
He shook his head.
Then, inevitably, he remembered the fusion. Rainbow Quartz. The feeling of relief, of profound calm, as if something he'd been holding tight for a long time had finally loosened. He also remembered his mother's secrets, things he hadn't expected to affect him so deeply. He thought he was used to carrying that legacy, but the fusion had proven him wrong.
It had done him good.
For a moment, he considered the idea of fusing again. Not because he needed to escape, but because he knew how relaxing it could be. But he quickly dismissed the thought. He didn't want to use Pearl that way. She wasn't a refuge or a tool, and he knew it. If they were to fuse again, it would be because Pearl brought it up first, in a different way, at a different time.
With that final thought, Steven closed his eyes. His breathing gradually slowed as real exhaustion, not emotional fatigue, began to take over.
The night wore on.
And with it, without Steven yet knowing it, something else began to stir in the silence of his dreams.
Steven felt the familiar tug on his chest, that soft but inevitable pull that always appeared when he was sound asleep. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't pleasant either. It was as if someone were taking his gem and gently pulling it, without asking permission.
"Who will it be this time... Lars? Connie? Kiwi? Roberto? Connie again? Ronaldo?... I hope not him," he thought as darkness enveloped him completely.
The void dragged him down for a few seconds that seemed to stretch longer than usual. Then, without a clear transition, something changed.
Steven opened his eyes.
"Huh?"
The place didn't resemble any of his usual dreams. There were no stars, no open space, no pinkish hue he'd grown accustomed to. Everything was bathed in a deep, almost liquid blue light, as if the air itself had weight. The ground reflected the light like a mirror of frozen water, and yet it wasn't wet.
"Blue?" he said without thinking.
"Huh?"
The voice echoed behind him. Deep, weary, filled with a sadness so dense that Steven sensed it even before he turned around. He didn't turn immediately. He stood still for a few seconds, his shoulders tense.
When he finally turned around, he saw her.
The giant figure of Blue Diamond was there, partially kneeling, her head bowed. He didn't need to look directly at her to feel her presence. It was impossible to ignore something so large, so charged with emotion.
Steven, however, said nothing.
He didn't greet her. He didn't ask why she was there. He showed neither surprise nor respect. Since what happened with the Cluster, he didn't want to talk to any Diamond. And least of all her. The last time they met, he still had the image of a Ruby shattering before his eyes as if it were nothing etched in his memory.
So he did the only thing he could do.
He ignored her.
Steven looked away and began to observe the place carefully. If she was there, there must be a reason beyond her. The surroundings weren't just a backdrop; they felt constructed, deliberate. He took a few steps, noticing how the ground barely reacted to his presence, as if it recognized his gem.
In the distance, he saw translucent columns that looked as if they were made of solidified tears. Within some of them, shadows moved slowly, like trapped memories. They weren't whole gems, they were echoes. Emotions that had found no rest.
He frowned.
Then he saw her.
A little apart, almost hidden among crystalline structures, stood a blue Pearl. Not his. This one remained still, her gaze lowered, her hands clasped in front of her. She didn't speak, she didn't move. Her expression was that of someone who had learned to disappear so as not to disturb.
Steven approached slowly, feeling an unease he couldn't explain.
"..."
He said nothing. He only observed her.
The Pearl raised her gaze for a second, as if she had sensed him, but she didn't speak. Her eyes were dull, filled with an absolute obedience that made his stomach churn.
Steven clenched his fists.
This place wasn't just a dream. It was a reflection. A space made of grief, control, and forced silence. And Blue Diamond wasn't the center... she was the anchor.
Behind him, Blue's presence remained, patient, heavy, like a waiting tide.
Steven took a deep breath.
He wasn't going to speak to her yet.
First, he wanted to understand where he really was.
As he walked slowly, Steven noticed the place was almost empty. It was just them: Blue Diamond and her Pearl, who stood motionless to one side, her head slightly tilted. There was no other movement, no other gems, no echo of voices to distract him. The entire space seemed to be held in a cold silence, as if it breathed only to sustain Blue Diamond's presence.
Steven glanced up at her for a moment. The Diamond seemed to sense something unknown; her head slowly lifted, and her large, deep eyes searched the void, following a trail he couldn't see. It wasn't a gesture of threat, nor was it outright curiosity. Rather, it was... caution.
Steven, however, remained unfazed. He knew that if he spoke, if he made any movement, she would become aware of his presence. But right now, he was invisible, a silent observer. He could study everything without the enormous blue presence directly detecting him.
His eyes then shifted to a panel that seemed to rise from the floor in front of him. It wasn't an ordinary panel; it was part of the very structure of the place. Crystals and blue light converged in patterns reminiscent of constellation maps, but they weren't stars. They were systems, planets, satellites, and energy lines that intertwined like the roots of an immense tree.
Steven lowered his head, approaching cautiously, trying to keep his breathing from breaking the silence. He touched the surface of the panel, and instantly the projections responded to his presence. The blue light shone a little brighter, revealing a larger, brighter planet—clearly the Gems' homeworld. He was amazed to notice the details: entire continents, floating structures, and energy zones that vibrated as if the planet were alive.
He walked around the panel, carefully observing each projection. The energy lines seemed to connect directly to specific locations.
A few minutes passed as he examined every detail. He touched a crystal, and a light revealed the power flows emanating from the planet, the energy pulse of the Diamonds, the position of the fragments that had been released. He realized he could learn a great deal from this place if he remained calm and observant.
And then, the voice. Deep, solemn, cutting through the silence like a contained thunderclap:
"Universe... is that you?"
Steven froze. He didn't answer. Slowly, he turned his head and looked directly at her. His eyes met Blue Diamond's. He said nothing. He just gazed at her, calmly assessing every gesture, every small movement of her immense presence.
In that instant, the entire planet, the panel, the energy, and the silent Pearl all seemed to await his reaction. But Steven was in no hurry. He wasn't going to speak. Not yet. First, he wanted to see. To observe. To understand.
The silence returned, heavy, and Steven continued to scan the panel and the planet with his eyes, while the gigantic blue form followed him, trying to discern who this small being truly was, walking among ancient secrets and crystallized memories.
"Are you angry?" Blue Diamond asked after a moment of heavy silence.
Steven looked up from the panel he had been studying, from the planet that stretched before him like a living map, and answered in a low but firm voice.
"Perhaps," he said, clearly conveying more than words could contain.
"What do you think?" she replied, her tone laced with a mixture of curiosity and weariness, as if she had awaited that question for centuries.
Steven frowned slightly, his eyes scanning the scene around him once more. Everything was still, so quiet he could hear the echo of his own breathing, or at least the feeling that the silence was watching him.
"I didn't want to break her," Blue Diamond continued, her voice trembling slightly as she explained. "I just wanted her to leave. I was going to tell Pearl to take her somewhere else."
Steven glanced at Blue Pearl, who stood to one side, still, almost invisible, as if she were part of the air itself. Pearl made a small movement, a gesture so subtle that only Blue could have perceived it. The gem remained silent, but her posture spoke volumes: obedience, waiting, and a slight, suppressed anxiety.
Steven took a deep breath and fixed his gaze on Blue Diamond again. The blue figure was gigantic, motionless, but carried a presence so heavy that he could feel it in his fingertips, in his heart, deep in his chest.
"If I were a gem and I spoke to you like this…" Steven began, his voice barely a whisper, "would you break me?"
Silence spread like a blanket. Even the planet seemed to hold its breath. Blue Diamond slowly opened her large, deep eyes and turned them toward where she sensed Steven's presence. Her gaze wasn't searching for him as before; it was curious, appraising, and laden with centuries of experience and accumulated pain.
After a few seconds that seemed like an eternity, she answered.
"If you had asked me in Era One, I would have told you without hesitation... I would," she said, with a chilling honesty.
Steven blinked, letting the statement sink in. It was a simple, direct, straightforward statement, and at the same time, terrifying. He looked up at the ceiling, trying to process the magnitude of that truth.
"But now..." Blue continued, her tone softer, more introspective, "now I'm not sure. Since Rose's death, I haven't been very active, and I've... I've had time to think."
Steven noticed her breathing slowing. The deep blue of the giant gem felt less threatening, but still heavy with history, with decisions made and not made.
"I'm still in my colonies, but I've been wondering for centuries... are we doing anything right?" he murmured.
"I questioned it with the only other Diamond I was able to talk to very often... she gave me some doubts too, you know? But well, she's much more loyal to White's ideals, and that's why she didn't hesitate to shatter that gem."
Silence returned. Steven swallowed, feeling a small pink thread begin to appear in his form, a memory of Rose trying to seep in, an emotional weight that almost overwhelmed him. But he quickly suppressed it, knowing he couldn't let Rose's presence interfere with this encounter, even if it was in dreams.
"That doesn't answer my question," Steven said, a little more forcefully, letting his voice resonate in the blue space. "Would you do it or not?"
Blue Diamond looked at him, and for a moment, her gaze softened. She didn't answer immediately. Her eyes reflected the eternity of decisions, the doubt of centuries. In that moment, Steven understood something: even someone with the power to decide the life and death of others could have doubts. She could feel trapped between what she should do and what she wanted to do, between ideals and conscience.
Then, a familiar glimmer flashed through her mind. It was a flash of Pink, quick, ethereal, barely perceptible, like a whisper in the gem's memory. Blue looked up for an instant, noticing the presence, but before she could move, the spark vanished.
Steven stood still, feeling Blue Diamond's doubt drift between them, like a slow, endless river. There were no clear answers, no certainties. Only the feeling that, if she were truly a gem, this Diamond still didn't know what she would do with someone like him.
Silence settled over the place again, more intense than any sound, deeper than any shadow. Steven said nothing. He observed, breathed, and let the uncertainty remain, understanding that this doubt was more honest than any statement.
And then... he awoke.
The change was abrupt. From the calm, blue silence of sleep, he drifted into the familiar warmth and light of his room. He felt something wet and soft pressing against his face. With a sudden movement, he sat up and noticed Lapis's paw resting on his cheek, leaving warm, dusty marks.
"Ugh!" he said, rubbing his face as Lapis, still asleep, stirred beside him, completely unaware of his awakening. His bed was a mess, his phone was still charging, and the night breeze drifted in through the window.
Steven sighed, his heart still racing from the encounter in his dream. Even with Lapis's paw on him and the warmth of the bed, he couldn't get Blue Diamond's gaze, her doubts, her uncertainty, out of his mind. For the first time, Steven understood that even someone so powerful could be trapped by their own fear and guilt.
He stretched, letting the pink sensation in his chest subside a little, though he knew that what he had heard in his dream wouldn't easily disappear. For a moment, he simply lay there, with Lápiz's paw on his face, breathing, trying to process everything as the silent night continued around him.
End of Chapter 62: