Peridot dribbled the basketball across the car wash's entryway, which had been transformed into a makeshift court. She was heading towards the opposing team's goal—a paper bag with the bottom punched out taped onto a pole—when Steven blocked her.

"Ooh, whatcha gonna do?" Steven taunted.

"I'm open! I'm open!" yelled Amethyst from behind him. Peridot tossed the ball to her, where she proceeded to dunk it through the hoop.

"Yes!" Peridot shouted. "That was the winning point! A full ten to your pitiful zero!"

"It's not fair!" Steven complained. "It's two on one!"

"What are you talking about?" said Amethyst. "You're with Lapis."

"Yeah, but she's not even trying!"

Indeed, Lapis was standing off on the sidelines, not making the slightest effort to score any points or even participate. "I don't really care," she said. A pair of wings sprouted from the gem on her back. "In fact, I'm heading back to the barn." And she took off.

"Whatever, we still won," said Amethyst.

"Of course we did!" said Peridot. "Because nothing can stop the mighty combination of the great and lovable Peridot and the stupendous Amethyst!"

"Heck yeah!" Amethyst said. The two gave each other a high-five.

"Man, Peri," Amethyst said, laughing a bit. "A few months ago, when you were trying to kill us and stuff, I never would have guessed we would become so close!"

"Me neither!" said Peridot. "I mean, me, a Peridot technician, getting all chummy with such an awesome, high-ranking Gem type as an Amethyst? Totally unthinkable back on Homeworld!"

"Yeah," said Amethyst, chuckling. But soon the full implications of Peridot's words sunk in. "Wait… what do mean by that?" she asked suspiciously.

"Er, I mean that back on Homeworld, nobody would have thought about it," a confused Peridot replied.

"Yeah, but is that the only reason you like me?" said Amethyst angrily. "Because I'm an Amethyst?"

"Of course not!" Peridot said hastily. "I mean, for one thing, you're hardly the most desirable Amethyst in the first place. After all, you're…" She stopped. "What I mean is, most Amethysts are one way, and you're…"

"Defective?"

"Yeah!" said Peridot. "No, wait! I—I'm sure you're just as capable as any other Amethyst!"

"Which is the only reason you like me."

"Exactly! Wait, no—"

"Yeah, whatever. I can tell when I'm being patronized." She began to walk away.

"Come on, Amethyst," said Steven, catching up to her. "You know Peridot doesn't actually mean any of that stuff."

"Well, once she figures out what she does mean, she can come and tell me." With that, she marched off.

"Oh, come on!" Peridot groaned. "Now she's mad at me again!"

"Amethyst can be very insecure, and she often gets moody because of that," said Steven. "Still, it was a bit easy to misinterpret your words. You should apologize once she's calmed down a little."

"Well, of course I should apologize! The problem is, I have no idea how I should do that! What can I say that won't make her upset again? And I can't even use my tape recorder like before because Lapis destroyed it!" She slumped down onto the pavement. "I wish I knew how to talk to people."

"I have a book that might help," said Steven. "Though I suppose it's pretty rudimentary. This situation seems more advanced."

A honking of a horn interrupted them; Greg, in his van, had returned with the industrial-size containers of liquid soap he had purchased for his business. "Hey, buds!" he called out his window. "Clear the way so I can get through!"

Steven and Peridot made room for the van to pull in. "Hey, Dad," Steven said as his father got out of the vehicle and started to unload. "Do you think you could give us some advice?"

"Sure," Greg said. "What's up?"

"Well, Peridot said some stuff that made Amethyst feel like the only reason she liked hanging out with her was because she was a quartz, and we were wondering how we could help her see that that's not the case."

"Oh, wow," said Greg, absent-mindedly scratching the back of his neck. "I'm not sure if I can help with that. I mean, only liking her for her gem type… that's not true, is it?"

"Of course not!" Peridot said angrily.

"Then just tell her that."

"Like it's that easy," Peridot scoffed. "How am I supposed to convey all the complex emotions I feel about her into coherent commentary? Our shared vocabulary is not enough!"

Greg shrugged. "I don't know, but as long you're honest and try your best, she's bound to at least listen."

"I hope so."

Steven and Peridot entered the beach house, where Amethyst and Garnet sat on the couch. Amethyst looked up.

"Hey, Amethyst," Peridot said, giving a nervous wave.

"Hey," said Amethyst. "So… I've been talking to Garnet, and she told me I shouldn't have gotten so upset. That you're constantly making progress, so I should give you some more leeway when it comes to your hierarchy-based thinking…"

"No, you were right to feel that way," said Peridot. "I made it seem like I viewed you as a replaceable drone and nothing more. But that's not true. I…" She sighed. "Look, back on Homeworld, I never got to meet any Amethysts. I never even met a Quartz before Jasper. So I have no idea what they're like, personality-wise. The only thing I know about them is that they're meant to be large, tall, broad-shouldered—attributes that you are not. Yet I like you despite that. I like you because… you're cool. Because you have this passion for things. You're fun, and funny, and laid-back, but you also know when to take things seriously, and you can be sweet, and kind, and encouraging, and a thousand other things. And if all Amethysts are like that, then yes, I like you because you're an Amethyst. But since I have no knowledge of whether that's the norm, well, then it's the equivalent of saying that I like you… because you're you."

"Really?"

"Really," said Peridot. "Maybe my I was initially pulled towards you over the other Gems because of your type, but I'd like to think that, over the course of our being acquaintances, we've developed a close and special bond with each other that would have occurred whether you were an Amethyst or not."

Amethyst grinned. Then, without warning, she grabbed Peridot and gave her a big smooch on the lips.

"Gah!" said Peridot, staggering back.

"What's the matter?" Amethyst said teasingly. "Didn't you like that?"

"No—I mean, it was weird, and unexpected, but… it wasn't bad." She looked up shyly. "Could we do it some more?"

Without hesitation, Amethyst pounced on her friend—though, it seemed, they had become a bit more than friends now.

"I'm happy for them," said Garnet, observing. "Almost makes me want to defuse for a while."

"Er, right," Steven said, embarrassed. "Though, I'm, uh, going to go outside. You know, until they're finished."

And so, leaving the scene of the make-out session, he rushed out the door.