Connie gasped out and bolted upright. She drew in a long shuddering breath before she took in her surroundings. She was sitting on cold concrete in a dark room. Thorny vines crept along the walls; some with withered roses drooping, some dried and brown. She didn't know why, but they looked ominous. She stood, careful not to touch the plant beside her.

She slowly looked around and noticed the vines were tangled in numerous places as if they held down or encased something beneath them. She only had to turn her head to see what they held: Sadie's terrified face stared back at her. The girl tried to speak, but vines covered her mouth and pulled her back into the shadows.

Far behind Sadie, stood an immobile White Diamond. Her form was unmistakable, even with vines encasing her and pink blotches covering her gemstone as the corruption threatened to overtake her. Her gem glowed through the thick bramble that concealed it.

"What's happening?" Connie wondered out loud as she turned to look around. A strong pink glow drew her eyes upward.

Well above her, on top of an ensnared and gnarled statue, in the midst of the core of vines, was Steven. She strained her eyes and was able to see the statue he stood on was an exact replica of her friend, though thoroughly ensnared in gnarled vines, and the Steven on top of it wasn't fully there. It was like he was a ghost; transparent and illuminated.

"Where am I?" She breathed out. She looked down at her own body and gasped out. Transparent. "Am...am I…?" Her hand went to her chest and she found a steady heartbeat. "Not dead," she told herself.

She looked back at Steven and thought hard. This room. It looked exactly like what Steven described to her when the Diamonds first attacked Earth. While in it, Steven was able to connect with her with his unconscious mind.

Then she understood. Steven couldn't beat the gem warriors in the real world. So he took them into a place where he had all the power: his own head.

But she was still here. Free to move and think. She wasn't entangled like the other humans.

At least, not yet.

Connie clenched her fists and set her face. She had to get to Steven. She had to beat him in his own head. She was the only one who still could.

She took careful steps and danced around the gnarled vines. Some of them jerked, as if they sensed her, and moved toward her like snakes, but Connie was too quick. In movements that would have made Pearl proud, she vaulted herself to the base of Steven's statue.

She stared and the obstacle and jumped up. But she didn't fall back down like she thought she would. Instead, she soared up past where she intended to grab. She somersaulted backward and steadied herself carefully as she ascended.

With a strained noise, Connie willed herself to stop when she reached the source of the pink glow. Steven stood there; he looked like himself, all except his eyes. They were half-open and had dark circles under them, but it was more than that. His irises were pink and shaped like a diamond. Even his body, though untouched by visible marks of corruption, was different. His entire form was slumped like he was an empty shell of who he once was.

"Steven?" Connie called. The vines around him stirred restlessly, but the boy did not react. He didn't even blink.

Connie watched a vine creep along the ground and wind itself around Steven's leg as it joined all of the others that kept the teen ensnared. He didn't even flinch when it tightened and thorns embedded themselves into his skin. He just gave the same dead stare.

"Steven," Connie tried again, but this time, she reached out her hand to the boy. The vines didn't react as she inched closer to him. "It's me, Connie," she told him. Her voice broke as Steven still didn't react. "I'm here."

Her fingers brushed against his cheek. A loud wailing song erupted in the back of her head; it clogged her senses and shattered her sense of self. Words were there, but she couldn't make them out. She could only feel it drag her further from reality.

She barely felt a vine grab onto her ankle, but her fighter instincts kicked in. She yanked her leg away and pulled her hand back from Steven's face to swat at another one that danced closer to her.

As soon as her fingers left his skin, the vines became limp and the sound left her head.

Connie took in a sharp breath of relief and looked at the boy, who remained still.

"What was that?" she asked him even though she knew she wouldn't get a response.

She landed on top of the statue and stood in front of her friend. Her feet were just inches away from vines, but she didn't care. The answer was right in front of her, but Steven couldn't see her. He couldn't hear her. He didn't know her. Not while that song held him hostage.

She took another step closer to him, now barely a foot away from him.

"Steven," she said again as she raised both of her hands. "I got you."

She clasped her hands over his ears and pressed her forehead to his. She sensed the vines around her as they lashed out and tried to climb her leg, but she stomped on them every time. Some grabbed her arms and pulled, but she refused to budge and dug her hands into the side of Steven's face.

And the song. It tried to consume her. The melody screamed a mournful tune in her ear and Connie fought to remember who she was as a crippling chill came over her.

"Steven, don't listen to it," she begged, barely able to hear herself over the song.

She felt it wind its way down her body and nestle itself in her heart. Everyone around her was gone, she realized as she stared into the blank face of the boy in front of her. No one could help her. She couldn't even help the boy she loved. She was nobody. Nothing. Everything she did in the past meant nothing to the person she was now.

If she had been that person, she would have been able to help Steven. Maybe that's why he preferred to hear this song over Connie's voice. She left him alone to become this. She wasn't there for him when he needed her the most. He didn't like her anymore. She didn't deserve him. She deserved to feel alone.

"I don't blame you for giving up on me," Connie told the boy. She stopped fighting the vines as they crept up her ankles. She succumbed to the song's words that she couldn't understand, but she felt it deep within her. "I'd hate me too. I abandoned you. I left you alone and didn't even think that you were hurting."

The song wailed out, exactly like Steven had when she unknowingly hurt him with her sword.

"I'm a horrible friend," she told him as her voice broke.

The song agreed with her. Its assault on her senses seemed to stop as her heart shattered. It became a soothing melody and coaxed her toward it. It promised her a way to stop the ache in her chest, the burning in her eyes, and the indescribable pain that came with letting a friend down.

Connie's hands dropped from Steven's ears and she gently caressed his cheek.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. She closed her eyes as a vine wound its way around her face.

Her fingers left his skin as the vines gently pulled her away, her hand still outstretched.

A hand suddenly latched onto hers and she felt the vines rapidly retract as if burned.

She forced her eyes open and gasped out. Steven had moved. He reached out and grabbed her hand, his eyes barely focused while he stared at her.

"You're not," he whispered, his voice strained as if each word was a struggle to form.

He pulled Connie back over to him and she stood, watching him as the song grew violent in her head again. But that song didn't matter to her anymore. All that did was keeping the boy in front of her focused on her.

"Not what?"

Steven blinked slowly. "A horrible friend," he breathed out. "That's me."

His head began to fall again and his hand went limp in hers. She was losing him again.

"No, you're my best friend!" Connie told him. She pressed his hand to her chest and stepped on vines to get close to him. They didn't move under her feet, though the ones around their heads swayed threateningly. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't care about you."

Steven's eyes trailed up slowly and met her gaze. Even in his mind, his eyes were still tainted by corruption: diamond-shaped and pink. She had never seen Steven look so lost, so defeated.

"We can beat this," she told him. "Together."

If Connie hadn't been focused on the teen in front of her, she would have missed him shaking his head. The movement was so slight that it almost didn't happen.

"You deserve a better friend," he said. His voice wasn't strained this time. It was clear and in the key of the song that barraged Connie's eardrums.

Connie forced out a laugh. "Come on," she said. "I saved the galaxy with you. We're stuck together."

Steven pulled his hand out of hers, but his fingers paused slightly before they completely left her grasp. His hand fell back to his side and he took a small step back. Move vines wrapped around his chest from behind and the ones that dangled around them slowly moved closer.

"Leave me alone," Steven said, his voice detached. His eyes fell to the ground again, unseeing.

"No!" Connie said. She tried to take a step forward, but a vine with a rose on it grabbed her wrist and yanked her back. Even though she was no longer touching him, the song raged on in her head. She heard it calling out to her, begging for her to let go of the boy and instead focus on it.

But she didn't.

Instead, she planted her feet and tugged at the vines as the wound around her limbs. She tried to lash out at the vines as they encased Steven in a thorned bubble, but she couldn't reach them. The vines, the song, it was all too strong.

Wait. A song.

Her heart pounded in her chest as more vines grabbed her and curled around her body. She struggled and fought, but it was useless. She only had one chance.

"The sun is bright, our shirts are clean, we're sitting high above the sea, come and share this jam with me!" Connie sang out, her voice ringing oddly in the room.

Silence met her, but she did notice Steven's head turn slightly toward her as she sang.

"Come on, Steven!" she called as the vines wound their way around her throat and pulled her further from him. "You wouldn't leave your jam bud hanging, right?!"

The vines covered her mouth and quickly encased her. She couldn't move. She couldn't see. All she could do was listen to the wailing melody that she couldn't understand.

Unseen to her, Steven raised his head and watched his childhood friend disappear from view. He winced as the vines curled tighter around her and he began to feel something within the empty void that was his chest. His heart began to race and his hand shook as he tried to raise it toward her.

"Connie," he whispered. The blood in his ears overtook the sound of the song he had grown so accustomed to hearing. As soon as the words were drowned out, the world around him seemed to snap back into focus, just ever so slightly.

"Connie!" he yelled out this time. He ripped his arm from the vines grasp and reached out. He pulled and tried to take a step, but the plants held him back. He grunted and groaned, but no matter how he struggled, they only wound around him tighter and moved fasted to encase him in a withered isolation chamber. The song kept crashing in his head like waves, waning and waxing, as his desperation turned to panic and panic turned to hopelessness.

He couldn't get to her. He couldn't save her. He wasn't strong enough.

He did this. She was here because of him. Trapped because of him.

Why did he even want to save her? She attacked him. Hurt him. Didn't she need to hurt too?

His arm fell, but his hand clenched into his a fist. He felt moisture on his cheeks as he stared at the vines in front of him. The vines began to close the only window to Connie he had left.

"No," Steven whispered, feeling the vines pulling him closer to them as they tightened their grip. "No, I don't want this for her."

The song wailed again and he gasped out. His hands weaved through his hair and his chest tightened. The melody became mournful, overpowering and guilting; it missed him. It wanted him to sing with it again. It wanted him to stop feeling again.

He felt it wrap around his mind and caress his consciousness. It hummed gently, though urgently. But it felt cold. He felt the chill sink down his spine and his body slumped again as it succumbed to the numbness. The icy hand gripped his heart and slowed its movements. As his eyes fell to the ground, he glanced once to his hand and flexed his fingers.

It felt nothing like her hand did. There was no warmth. No comfort. No friendship.

With the song, he didn't have to feel. He just had to listen. To hum along. To give in to the bursts of emotions when they happened and know he would sink back into the emptiness before long.

But her hand in his? It was...nice.

A pang of pain erupted in his chest and Steven doubled over from the sudden sensation from his freely beating heart. The vines around his neck withered and pulled away suddenly as if burned by the sudden heat radiating from the boy's skin.

Steven looked at the wall of vines in front of him and a pained breath escaped his lips as he pulled his arm forward again. Two vines snapped, but three more grabbed onto him. The song turned violent again, but this time, it wouldn't stop him. He wanted to feel her hand again. He wanted the warmth that came with it.

He needed her.

"Connie!" Steven yelled her name like it was the only word he knew. The only thing he knew he needed. His blood boiled and movements became far more sporadic as he struggled with the vines around him. They wouldn't stop him. Not this time.

He took a breath and turned his frustration and panic into the power that started this mess. His skin glowed pink and the vines quickly retracted, but they weren't fast enough.

Steven yelled as he forced his emotions outward: "Leave her alone!"

Pink light burst from him and the vines curled and silently shrieked as they were encased in the aura. Many were blasted apart the moment the light touched them. Those that didn't decay stiffened and turned to stone. They stood and dangled around the statue's head, like dead and gnarled tree roots.

Steven fell to his knees and the light faded from his skin and gem. He looked around the room spinning and his vision pulsed in and out of focus as he took in the damage. Everything was stone. Including the vines that encased Connie.

"No," he whispered before his strength left him. He fell over to his side and curled up, unable to do more than focus on breathing and shutting out the waning melody that refused to let him fall unconscious. He could barely turn his head when a faint cracking met his ears.

The vines surrounding Connie flaked away to reveal a pink flower that struggled to bloom against its restraints. Moments later, the stone shattered and the petals fell completely open. Connie sat inside of it, looking confused and stunned.

She looked over and saw the teen lying on his side and watching her through half-closed eyes.

"Steven!" She jumped off the flower and landed by him. She pulled him up and supported his weight as he leaned against her. The song lashed out and both of them winced, but neither of them gave it the attention it wanted. Instead, they just held each other.

"Peach or plum or strawberry?" Steven broke the silence with a soft voice. Connie looked down at him, confused for a moment before she realized he was continuing their jam song. She laughed out and tears quickly began to fall from her eyes.

"Any kind is fine, you see," Connie said as she pulled Steven closer. "As long as it's with my jam bud."

Steven clung onto her, but his grip was weak. Connie noticed the vines on the walls and ceiling slowly coming back to life as small dust particles and stone began to fall from them. She knew this wasn't a battle she could win. She knew that this wasn't a battle Steven could win. Not on his own.

"Steven," Connie said urgently as she pushed the boy back to look at his face. "You need to let the others go. They can help you."

"The others?" Steven asked weakly.

Connie nodded and pointed below them. "They're in vines. They're like statues in the real world. I think you brought them here to stop the fighting."

Steven's eyes unfocused as his brow furrowed, clearly trying to remember. "I…," he said, but he shook his head. He took a breath and nodded, though Connie felt his posture stiffen from guilt.

"Okay," he said after a moment more of silence. Connie watched him close his eyes and turned to see the vines begin to crawl up the walls, away from those on the ground. They all turned and made their way toward Steven and Connie.

The song grew in volume again. The gentle melody no longer existed. It no longer targeted Connie; its full attention was on Steven. Connie jumped when he heard Steven hum along to it.

"What are you doing?" Connie cried. "Don't give in!"

Steven shook his head but didn't speak. He continued to hum and as he did, the vines on the floor retreated from the ones they held hostage and pointed at the two teens. Gems and humans alike gasped out below them and fell over with huffs before their forms fazed out of existence.

Connie, who watched the progression, understood.

"You're redirecting it," she said. "You're forcing it back on yourself."

Steven nodded.

"Only way," he breathed out. He didn't resume his humming this time. The vines swayed but did not move closer. "It's my problem."

Connie shook her head and gently lifted Steven's head so his eyes met hers. "If you let us, we'll help carry your burden."

"B-but," Steven said as he gestured weakly to the vines around him.

Connie shushed him and pulled him close again. "No buts. That's what friends do. You did the same for us, it's time we repaid the favor."

Steven said nothing. He just took in a shuddering breath and held onto Connie like she was his lifeline. The pair sat and ignored the corrupted song around them for a while longer, just listening to each other's hearts beat.

The vines were slowly edging up the statue and Connie watched them grab onto Steven's ankle and curl up his leg. One brushed against her foot and latched onto weakly too.

Steven pulled away as he noticed the vine on her leg. He reached over and pulled it off, only to have it latch onto his hand.

"There's nothing more you can do," Steven said as Connie opened her mouth to protest. They both just watched it weave around his arm.

Steven shakily pushed himself up and pulled Connie up to stand with him. He hesitated before letting her go completely.

"You should go," he said.

"But…," Connie started, but the vines were moving quicker now.

The song shrieked out and both of them jumped and clasped their hands over their ears. It helped, Connie realized; the song was no longer inside their head. It was around them. Fighting to get back in.

Steven's gem glowed in response to the outburst and his eyes widened as he looked down to stare at it. The color started in his cheeks and spread to cover his entire body as the boy strained against it.

"No!" he said and he shook his head violently. "Stop it!"

She watched in horror as Steven doubled over, his arms over his gem. His entire body glowed a sickly pink now. She took a small step back when two horns sprouted from his head and a large pink blotch grew on his neck.

"Steven?" Connie asked. She reached out to the boy and felt the heat coming from his skin. The moment her finger touched his arm, an immense shock of pain jolted her and reverberated down her entire arm.

"Connie!" Steven said, voice urgent. "I'm sorry. I..."

Connie nursed her arm and followed Steven's gaze down to her fingertips. They were deep pink. The same color as the corruption scars that covered Steven's face.

"You have to go!" Steven yelled as he stepped away from her. The song was raging around them, booming like thunder and overpowering their senses. Connie barely heard Steven yell to her as she took in the new color to her skin. She watched it grow slightly as the song increased its volume and tempo.

"CONNIE!"

She snapped back to reality and watched Steven struggle against the vines to get away from her.

"You need to go!" he told her.

She closed her fist around the corruption and nodded to him. She didn't want to leave, but staying wouldn't help him. Being corrupted herself would only spell her friend's doom.

"Promise me one thing," Connie said as Steven took a breath and raised a hand toward her, palm out. Her vision started to blur and fade around the edges as he pushed her from his mind. "Promise me you won't stop fighting. Promise you'll remember me!"

Silence rang out as her vision left her.

Then…

"I promise."

… … … … … … … … … ..

Author's note: This chapter is what inspired chapter two and on. I am very happy with how it turned out. What did you think?