((Steven Universe AU! Alfred as Topaz, and Ivan as Quartz.))

Fusion

"Concentrate, this isn't going to work if you can't- Ow!"

"Sorry, sorry! You're just moving too fast!"

"Alfred, we've kept the same pace for the past hour."

"That doesn't mean it still isn't fast!"

With a sigh, the taller of the two gems let the other go, stepping away from him as he stretched out his stiff muscles. They had been trying to get a dance down for the past hour or so, and holding his limbs in the same position for so long had made them ache. He had expected it to be a rather simple process, however, knowing his partner...

His Topaz counterpart had grown rather frustrated since they had started, having stepped on Ivan's foot once, then again, then tripped them half-way through. He didn't mean to be so clumsy, he was just nervous. After all, this wasn't just some little thing. It was fusion, their fusion.

The two gems had been together for a rather long time- since they were at Homeworld, even up until now, on Earth. It had been over a thousand years..and they had never fused. Of course it would have come in handy a few times in battle, especially since Ivan had a nasty habit of using his own body to protect Alfred, which resulted in far too many regenerations. It wasn't that Alfred couldn't fight for himself- he was a damn good fighter, but, unlike the Quartz gem at his side, he marched in without strategy, and it hardly ever ended well.

Besides, the other times they had tried, one of them had been just as nervous as Alfred was now. Fusion wasn't just a battle tactic: it was so much more. To fuse with another gem, to give up who you are to become someone greater, that was the ultimate way for two gems to truly bond. Their love was strong, but fusion gave that love a voice, a face- it showed just how much trust they had in each other, and if it worked, it'd go to prove just how great they were together.

"We'll try again later.." The Quartz gem said, reaching out to put his hand on his shoulder and give it a light squeeze. Alfred knew what later ment: 'Some other day, but no day soon.'

"No, I think I've got it, let's just keep trying!" He said, giving the other a confident smile, though he still felt a bit of nervousness. Fusion was so intimate, so beautiful- he didn't want to be the one to mess it up.

Ivan looked at him, a hint of a frown on his lips, the way he always looked when he had to tell Alfred 'No', "Alfred, I know you want to try, but we should take a break. We've been at this for a while now, and still, nothing has happened."

That statement rubbed his partner the wrong way, "Well, yeah we haven't gotten anywhere this far, but if we just keep trying-!"

"Alfred," Quartz said, a little more stern this time, "It's not going to work, let's just stop."

Stop? Why was he always wanting to stop? Alfred understood that it was a little aggravating, but that didn't mean they couldn't still try! Ivan always just gave up when things didn't go the way he wanted them to. It was frustrating, how the other always made him feel like it was Alfred's fault they couldn't fuse. Weither it was that look, or his words, he always made it out to be like it was something wrong on Alfred's part.

"Why do you always do this?!" Alfred said, his voice rising along with his anger, "We don't even get close to fusing before you already want to quit! Why won't you just keep trying?!"

"Alfred, we're not having this argument-"

"No!" He cut him off, glaring at the other gem as he did so, "What is your problem?! Is there something wrong? Do you- Do you not want to fuse with me?"

Ivan could tell that Alfred was starting to get emotional about this. Alfred got upset rather easily, espically when it came to their lack of ability to fuse. He could already see the tears that began to surface in the other's bright eyes, and it made his heart sting a bit.

"It isn't that, I just-"

"You just what?!"

"I don't think we can, Alfred!"

There was a pause, a long, heavy silence in the air, before it was finally broken.

"Y-You..what?"

Ivan pursed his lips, looking away from him for a moment, trying to think of how to phrase what he wanted to say.

"Alfred..We've been trying for hundreds of years to fuse, but it's never worked, not even for a moment. You know how I feel about you, and I know how you feel," He said, though his tone lowered a bit, finding the words hard to say, "Maybe..You and I just aren't ment to fuse."

The other gems they knew fused so easily. They had each fused with someone else before, Alfred with Arthur, Ivan with Katya and Natalia, and yet, never with each other. It wasn't as though they weren't able to fuse together, they just..couldn't.

Of course, Alfred had thought about it before. It was so easy for other gems to fuse, and yet he and Ivan hadn't, and they had been together longer then some of the other fusions out there. But, even if they could, Ivan always wanted to quit, so they'd never know if they could or not. Alfred wanted to do it more then anything, but Ivan always stopped before it could even get the chance to happen.

The silence was cold after that, and it put a weight on Ivan's heart as he watched Alfred, who stared blankly at the ground. He didn't say anything, though, after a moment, he saw the light catch a tear as it fell.

"Fine..we'll stop for today.." The Topaz gem said, his voice a little weak and his once confident smile long gone. He didn't look at Ivan as he turned, leaving the room without another word.

Ivan could tell he was upset, and after a little while of collecting his own thoughts, he followed.

Night had creeped up on them, and the Earth's only moon glimmered brightly in the sky above them. The light reflected off of the waves as they lapped gently at the shore, and they seeped through the bottom of his shoes, making his feet uncomfortably wet.

The words from earlier rang through his head, louder than a bell. Not meant to fuse..How could that even be? He and Ivan were so close, and their love was so strong..What was stopping them? Why would Quartz think that they couldn't fuse?

Alfred had come out here before...this planet's ocean and it's beaches were rather calming. They didn't have things like this back at Homeworld, at least, not when Alfred had been there..This was where he came to think and take his mind away from whatever his mind needed to be taken from. He would sit on the shore, just as he was now, with his arms hugging his knees close, sitting just close enough to where the waters would reach his feet, but no further. It was a nice night, and the only sound was the chatter of humans and the cries of excitement from the sea - side festival that took place a mile or so away.

He sat out there alone for a while, watching the stars and wondering what the galaxy was like now, until he heard soft footsteps behind him, and, from the corner of his eye, saw someone sit down next to him.

It was silent for another few moments, until the Quartz gem spoke.

"It's not as though I don't want to fuse with you..I want nothing more than to fuse with you, but, I.." There was a pause, "What if something goes wrong? Or what if it isn't what we hoped it would be?..What then?"

Alfred paused, and he turned his eyes over to Ivan. The other was looking out onto the waters, his fingers running slowly through the sand. And Alfred saw something in his eyes that he hardly ever saw: worry.

It was then that Alfred realized it- Ivan wanted to fuse, but he was just as nervous as Alfred was. Here he had thought the whole time that Quartz was calm and collected about the whole thing, and yet here he was, giving words to the worries Alfred had had all along.

"Ivan.." He moved his hand, placing it gently on top of the other's. Light violet eyes turned to meet amber, and Topaz offered him a soft smile, "It will work..I know it will. As long as we're together, it'll be everything we dreamed of, and more."

Quartz watched him for a moment longer, still a little unsure, though he did feel a new found confidence with the other's words. He was right, as long as it was Alfred he was fusing with, nothing could go wrong.

He began to say something, however, a sudden music cut him off. The band at the festival had switched to a slower, more lovely tune, one neither of them had ever heard before. The music wasn't loud, the distance having muted the sound a bit so that it was not more then a dull melody. Still, it was loud enough to hear, and it gave Ivan a sudden idea.

Taking his hand out from under Alfred's, he stood, brushing off the sand from his clothing for a moment before he looked back to his partner. Now wearing a softer smile, with his eyes gleaming with admiration and the stars, he held out his hand to the other and asked, "Would you like to dance?"

Topaz stared at the hand, then at his lover, before a smile of his own spread onto his lips, and he slid his hand into the other's. He was pulled up, and an arm was wrapped around his waist as he was pulled close.

They danced together, the soft music as their lyrics and the waves as their beat. They glided freely, twirling and swaying, holding each other close. It was careless, free and beautiful as they moved together without the nervousness or stress they had before. It was just the two of them, together, as they enjoyed their dance, and each other.

Ivan dipped the other back, slowly and gently, so that he could stare down at the other as they held close to eachother. The music fell on deaf ears, for now it was only them as they looked into each others eyes, both smiling and happier then they could ever remember being.

However, their moment was suddenly interrupted as a light became visible, glowing from their gems- Ivan's from his chest, and Alfred's from the side of his head. The light got brighter, and they could feel it: their gems calling out for each other, their bodies drawing closer together as the attraction grew as strong as the light.

They continued to stare into each other's eyes, the light from their gems now brighter and almost blinging.

And with one soft kiss, they finally became one.