Beautiful morning at Beach City. Steven was home at last and everything was again back to normal. Normal except for the absence of Lars, who was still stuck on the Homeworld with the Off-color gems. Several days have passed since Steven's trial with the Blue and Yellow Diamonds, which abruptly ended with his escape and the question of whether or not his mother, Rose Quartz, really shattered the Pink Diamond. Three diamonds remain to this day, though the White Diamond is hardly, if ever, seen around the Homeworld. There are circulating rumors going around that the White Diamond doesn't know about the Pink Diamond's demise, because she was always "on the road".
Anyway, Steven awoke one morning to somebody knocking on the door. Pearl was the closest to the door, so she answered it. To her shock, it was one the Rubies, but one that Steven hasn't met yet: her gem was on her right hand-must be one of the Blue Diamond's Rubies.
"Ugh, not this again," said Pearl.
"It's all right," said the Ruby, "I only have a message for the Rose Quartz in your clan."
Obviously, she meant Steven. Gems do not reproduce, and nicknames are apparently a foreign concept to them. Because Steven has his mother's Rose Quartz gem, he is referred to outside gems as a Rose Quartz. Nervous, Steven got dressed and made his way downstairs to the Ruby at the door.
"Please, call me Steven," he said, "What's the message?"
"...Steven, the Diamonds request your presence once again, at the throne room on Homeworld," said the Ruby, "Shall I contact for special transport or..."
"It's okay," said Steven, "I know a shortcut. Tell them I will be right over."
Steven ran outside and toward his pet lion, sleeping in the middle of the beach surrounding the house. He jumped into the pink mane and disappeared. There was a long pause from Pearl and the Ruby over what a reasonable reaction should be. Pearl ended up shedding a tear and waving goodbye, while the Ruby went back to her transport and contact the Diamonds.
A short while later, Steven arrived at the abandoned kindergarten on the Homeworld, emerging from Lars's pink hair.
He heard a voice, "Oh! I predict the return of a friend!" Classic Padparadscha...
Steven was welcomed back with open arms from Lars and the Off-color gems.
"Steven!" said Lars, "Have you found a way to rescue me?"
"Lars, you have to come with me!" said Steven, "The Diamonds want to speak with me again!"
"What for? Are they gonna kill you or something?"
"I don't know. I guess we have no choice but to find out for ourselves."
Steven and Lars stepped out of the cave entrance and into the open. Ever since Steven escaped, the robonoids dispatched by the Yellow Diamond stopped looking for him, leaving the Off-color gems free to move the rock away from the cave entrance it temporarily blocked. This time, they were greeted by another set of robonoids-the ones designed to escort somebody in the right direction. Steven and Lars followed the escorting robonoid back to the throne room, where both the Yellow and Blue Diamonds were waiting.
And so the second trial began. The two Diamonds were seated in their respective thrones, with their corresponding Pearls and Zircons standing before them. The Yellow Diamond was the first to speak.
"Rose Quartz...and your human friend," she said leniently, "Thank you for coming."
"If you know what you want to do with me," Steven said proudly, "Please do it. I'm willing to suffer through whatever you place me in front of, as long as you leave the Earth alone."
The Blue Diamond said nothing of sheer importance. She shed a tear or two, but because of her constant mourning of the Pink Diamond, this was normal. The Yellow Diamond, on the contrary, heard what Steven said and laughed at him. It looks like he showed up on one of her better days.
"Suffer? We summoned you here because we owe you..." she paused for dramatic effect, "an apology."
Steven sighed with relief. Things seemed to be going better than he expected. Now it was the Blue Diamond's turn to speak.
"We had the pleasure of encountering some eyewitnesses from the scene of the crime. They said that Rose Quartz was near the palanquin, and she did have a sword. But she didn't have the chance to actually do it." Another tear was shed.
"That sounds about right," said Steven, "Because as far as I know, the sword can only poof a gem, not shatter it."
Now the Blue Zircon said something, "Rose Quartz, remind the Diamonds what you said to me during the first recess."
Steven sighed, "I told this Zircon that I didn't know how I shattered Pink Diamond because I'm not really the Rose Quartz you're looking for. That Rose Quartz is dead. I'm her son, and I'm forced to deal whatever she left behind, just because I have her gem." He lifted his shirt to reveal his mother's Rose Quartz gem. The other gems in the room were silent, then they whispered amongst each other.
"I'm sorry...I keep forgetting you gems don't know what 'mothers' and 'sons' are."
"You don't have to be sorry," said the Yellow Diamond, "We know how reproduction works, 'Son' of Rose Quartz."
"Please, call me Steven."
The Yellow Diamond gave Steven a gentle pat on the head. Yep, this was definitely a good day for her. The Blue Diamond continue to shed her tears, not over the Pink Diamond, but rather between this touching moment between 'Steven' and the Yellow Diamond. Lars kept a short distance away and his mouth shut, because he shuttered thinking about what happened last time.
Steven asked "So what's gonna happen now? Did you find out who really shattered your Pink Diamond? Are you gonna leave Earth alone?"
Both Diamonds looked down at Steven's big, sad eyes.