The stars show vast among the endless black of space. Steven cannot believe were he is right now. Yes, he had seen space before with pearl, but this…this is different. It could be the view from the beautifully sculpted tower of water, made solid by the crystal gem who had walked away from him moments ago.

Her back against him, she looks up into the stars mournfully. Her white eyes bore sorrow. All color had diminished itself to black and white from her sight long ago. She gracefully fell to her knees, the skirt of her dress fluttered around her, settling to the surface of the tower of water. She closed her eyes and spoke in a voice that could break hearts, "I just, wanna go home", she realizes how childish she sounds right now, but didn't care.

It breaks his heart watching her. It reminded him of how pearl looked in the rocket, how badly she wanted to go home. How much she missed home. Lapis though, had it different. He cannot imagine the horror of being a prisoner of that mirror for what he fears to be thousands of years. Lapis is broken because she is all alone. Because she is all alone. The boy wants nothing more than to embrace the heart broken woman, tell her that everything will be alright and that he will be there for her, but he knows that would not be enough for her, he wants to give her what she wants, to see her happy and smile like she had when they met. He sees no difference between the gem sitting before him and the gem he came to know in the mirror, but now he knew her more. She needs a friend now more than ever.

He sits down next to her and says with empathy. "I know how important home can be, that's why i'm here. You took the ocean away, and the ocean is an important part of my home". She turns her head to look at him. As he looks into her eyes he saw guilt among her orbs of white. She put her hand over her heart sincerely. "I'm only using the ocean because my gem is cracked". She clenches her hands to her sides as she looks determinedly to the stars," If i just stretch it far enough-". She trails off, still looking into the black of space. Until she sighs in defeat and let her arms fall to her sides. She looks woefully down to the watery floor."This is never going to work", she chokes on the last word. She closes her eyes shut as she hugs herself. She wants to cry, but she feels no tears, not a single one willing to fall. This only makes her feel worse about herself. She feels that she lost herself entirely.

Steven can see her lip quivering. Her body shaking, as she's choking sobs. He sees a piece of himself in that display of emotion. Her innocence and ignorance, with the rage of helplessness. And the fear of loneliness. What can he offer her? a place to call home on earth? No. While it is his home, it's her prison. He prays for an answer, a solution to help her, to give what she wants, or a means to make her happy again. He looks at the blue tear-drop shaped gem on her back. True to her word, it bares a large open crack for its size. He winces at the violent edges, how painful it must have been for the poor gem, not only how it affected her powers but also her state of being.

Realization set in the boys' face with a gasp."I can fix your gem, I have healing powers" he makes a gesture with his arms as if to show the certainty of his capability. Her previous demeanor falls to a questioning look "Wait, you have healing powers?" She raises her eyebrow in disbelief. "I know, right!?" His excitement bare, he stands with a lopsided grin. Still, she feels uncertain, but as far as hope ever went for her-, "Oh, what should I-?" she trusts him anyway. She turns her back towards him, as a patient would for a doctor. Placing her trust in him.

"Oh, uh-" he scratches the back of his head nervously, not sure how explain to her how the process is done. "Sorry, this, might be a little weird."

"What?"

He proceeds to lick the palm of his hand and raises it over his head, carefully aiming. Squinting his eyes, he pats his hand onto her gem. She shivers from the cold contact, but quickly recovers from the unexpected turn of event.

Steven backs up two steps, focusing onto her gem, and waits.

Then her gem starts to glow. Slowly, Lapis floats upwards, her dress and ribbons swaying in the air. She closes her eyes, feeling this strange yet calming sensation through her body. in the longest time she has never felt more at peace. Steven watches in awe of the spectacle of magic before him. The white light envelopes her to the point of blindness.

The light fades enough for steven to uncover his face. He sees Lapis standing with her back towards him. A pair of water protrusions from her back. Steven cannot comprehend what they are. One moment passes. They flap, rippling the water below his feet. It takes no genius to realize they are wings. They're unique as any would be. Water makes up the entirety of the marvels, from the skin of her back to the rippling tips. They're not shaped exactly like wings, but it would be unlike steven to not see the beauty before him.

Lapis stumbles where she stands, unfamiliar with the state of her being presently. Her eyes hurt, she tries to open them. When she did, all is blurry. Then focused. Her eyes adjust to her surroundings as she views them. She sees the fertile green of earth, and the prismatic colors of her tower, as well as the blue of her hands. She can see color again. She moves her wings for quick glance. She smiles. She cannot believe this was herself, she vaguely remembers who she was before, but she recognizes this, as the girl she remembers. Her eyes gloss over the emotions, regret, happiness, pain, love. She shakes and she cries into her hands. her tears falling into the water. She can cry again.

Steven reaches out to her, and tugs at the hem of her dress. She moves her hands from her face, and looks into his eyes. He notices that hers were no longer solid white, but now held blue irises, blue as deep as the sea. She falls to her knees and embraces him, crying into his shoulder.

"Thank you, steven. Thank you."

Recovering from the unexpected action, he smiles, and returns the embrace. "No prob, bob."

She pulls away to face him with misunderstanding.

",….Its Lapis" she states kindly. He scratches the back of his neck, as his cheeks grow red. "yeah" his face gets redder.

She giggles, still holding him. Then she kisses him on his forehead and embraces him again. He returns it with equal affection.

Minutes pass as the lovely scene continues. Sadly though steven pulls from her, with only their arms as a connection between them. He realizes one key aspect of this turn of events. Steven looks into her eyes, and says "You can go home now." She sniffles as she absorbs the realization. She rises to her feet, holding his hands. "Yes, I guess I can." She feels unsure but sure at the same time. She wants to go home, but something held her here. The boys' kindness and heart, helped her find hope again, she can never thank him enough.

The window of opportunity was slowly closing though, if she stayed, the other crystal gems would still see her as a threat, and she felt mutual towards them. Her conflict weighed her down. She must take the opportunity to leave before it's too late, just not yet. "Steven" She says his name, delicately. "I can never thank you enough,…I never, would-" She trails off. She can't find the words, but can only remember what they've been through. "I'm so sorry you got in trouble, because of me" Her voice cracked at the last three words. Steven squeezes her hands, looking at her forgivingly. "Hey, water under the bridge." He grins at his own joke. She smiles backed cheekily, admiring his humor.

Still, she knows her time is up. Regretfully still, she let go of his hands, walking back a measurable distance. "Goodbye"

She still smiles, she's still happy, and that's all he needs. "See you later, alligator" His voice small, but enough for her to hear. She takes flight, keeping whatever glance she can of the boy before she had to turn her way home. A single tear fell from her eye, and slowly makes its way to the boys' waiting hand. He watched her fly until she disappeared into the vastness of space. At a point in time of her departure, she looked like a star. He holds the tear to his heart, letting it absorb into his shirt. He will miss her, as she would miss him. A bond that-

"Wait,…how am I going to get down?"