Ice exploded around Sapphire and Pearl shielded Pink with her body, but the ice never reached them. "What is that?" Sapphire asked.

"Woah. Do you think it was Pink's?" Amethyst asked.

"My mom?" Pink asked. "You think my mom left him for me?"

"Don't be ridiculous" Pearl snapped at everyone "it's not Rose's. I would know."

"You sure?" Amethyst asked, gently.

"Yes!" Pearl snapped back.

"I believe her," Ruby said, although Pink looked disappointed. "You mean…my mom didn't leave him for me?"

Sapphire watched the scene unfold in front of her. Disconnected from all of it. Like strangers were talking instead of her closest friends. Did this belong to Pink? She could not see the past, her weakness, her flaw, her imperfection. But the future, surely if she looked, but the future was chopped. Pearl and Pink disagreeing about whether to keep it. Fragments of a future where they did, and it seemed close with Pink, but surely then it wasn't hers? If it did not already belong to her?

"Your mother left you many things Steven, just not this" Pearl was saying. "Now come along. We are leaving."

They walked back to the warp in mostly silence, even Pink uncharacteristically quiet.

When they got back to the temple Sapphire went into her room for the first time since getting back, it was a lovely place. Ice forming beautiful patterns on the ground, swirling up into statues and seats, most notably, a love seat. Not that she had used it often, or even seen her room often being Garnet. But she had liked the idea of it.

She sat on it alone now. Wondering, she had only been gone a few years, and yet it felt like she had come back after a millennium, Ruby and Pearl were close in a way she didn't understand, and didn't like. Amethyst and Pink seemed like friends like…equals. And Pink…Pink was unrecognizable…if she wasn't careful, she could even end up believing she was someone else entirely.

But she had been tricked once. Never again.

"Sappy?" Ruby asked gently, and Sapphire woke from her fitful sleep.

"Ruby? What?" She looked around at different walls. She was back in the temple, not her caves.

"You're cute when you sleep." Ruby said.

Sapphire felt the strange urge to giggle, like she had once done when Ruby had given her compliments. But the urge was so strange to her now, she did nothing instead.

"Right…" Ruby said. "We are keeping the lion."

"The lion?" Sapphire was taken back "Did you go and get it?"

"No. He came here."

"What?" She asked, shocked.

"Amethyst forgot to bubble the desert glass, it got out again. The lion came to help. I thought we should keep it, cause it's cute and Steven likes it, and Pearl agreed."

"What?" Sapphire said again.

"Steven wants to name him lion." Ruby continued. "I think it's a good name."

"I slept through an attack on the temple?" Sapphire asked.

"It was no big deal. We dealt with it." Ruby said.

"There was an attack on the temple, and I didn't see it?" Sapphire asked again.

Ruby fell silent, staring at her, not answering, not comforting.

"I…I…" Sapphire was horrified, it was like her worst fears had become real. "I didn't know." She whispered. Horrified.

Ruby stared at her, "and that's what does it, isn't it?"

"What do you mean?" Sapphire asked her. Here. Now. Don't get lost in a million futures. Don't hear a million things Ruby might say. But in the end, it didn't matter. Because nothing could be worse than what Ruby said.

"You didn't know." She said gently, almost comfortingly. "It's the worst thing you can imagine."

"Yes." Sapphire agreed.

"You were a fool." Ruby said, and her voice was strangely sad. "It was the last thing you said before you left. I think you're right." She said even more sadly. "I think it's better we aren't together anymore."

Sapphire felt a flicker of unease. She didn't sound like Ruby, she was so calm, this wasn't an emotional outburst.

"Why?" Sapphire asked hesitantly.

"Because." Ruby said, sounding older than a diamond. "Your worst fear is being me."

Sapphire felt like she could shatter. "No, Sweetums. That's not what I meant!" She moved her hair out of her eye to look at Ruby.

But Ruby wasn't looking at her.

"I know I'm a fool." She said simply. Quietly. "I can't count, you know. I never could have kept track of our anniversary myself. I had to ask Pearl to do it for me. I know rubies aren't thought to be much on Homeworld. Because they are all such fools. It never bothered me, not knowing much. Because there were others around, I could ask…like you. I could always ask you. And I knew…you worried too much. About the future, about possibilities, about not knowing what to do…I just never understood…how much you would hate not knowing. How much you would hate to be me." Ruby wasn't mad as she was speaking, she was calm. It was the worst thing Sapphire had ever heard.

"Ruby no -" she said.

"No. I'm right." Ruby said simply. "It's ok. I think I understand now." She smiles slightly "as much as I can understand you know?"

"Ruby. You aren't a fool!" Sapphire said.

"I am." Ruby said simply. "And I'm ok with that…anyway. I should get back to Steven. I hope you get better, Sapphire."

It was a goodbye. She was saying goodbye to her. It was like a hammer was being taken to Sapphire's gem with every word.

"No-"

But Ruby turned, and she walked out of the room, leaving Sapphire more alone than ever before. Knowing that she had lost more than she had ever lost before.