Lapis waited anxiously outside the barn. Night had fallen and there was still no sign of Bismuth. What if she lied just to leave? What if she didn't show up? Next to her Peridot, placed a gentle hand on her arm and smiled slightly. No, she couldn't think like that. Bismuth would show up and if she didn't Lapis would go to her. In the distance, Lapis could see the warp pad glow.

Bismuth walked slowly to the barn. She wasn't sure how this was gonna go, but it had to be done. It was time to face the music, no matter what awaited her. As she got closer she could see the two gems standing outside. Honestly, she was surprised to see the small Peridot. Technician gems like her were usually the first to panic and hide when there was tension in the air. Bismuth had to admit that she definitely had guts if she was sticking with her friend. She knew they could see her too, but how should she go about this? Walk-in with a smile and say "Well hi guys! I'm so glad you waited for me, now let's talk about how I almost killed you,"?Yeah, that would definitely go over great. Go in hands up and beg for forgiveness? That would probably work better, but as much as Bismuth wanted this to go over well she wasn't selling her dignity for it. By the time she was done wrestling with her options, she was already 10ft from them. For a moment, no one said anything. Bismuth stood stone-faced, staring at the two gems in front of her who just stared right back.

"Well?" Lapis was the first to break the silence. "What do you have to say?"

"I… I don't know," Bismuth admitted.

"yOU DON'T KNOW!?" Lapis screamed "How could you not know?! You were the one who suggested this stupid meeting in THE FIRST PLACE!" Lapis summoned the water from the pond once again. Peridot clenched her fists, ready to fight with her if she had to. Bismuth's eyes widened.

"NO, I DON'T KNOW!" Bismuth thrust her arms in front of her, bracing herself. "How on earth could I know what to say? I did something wrong, I know. You weren't fighting, you shouldn't have even been in that battle! But I still did it...and you were the one who suffered for it." Tears welled in Bismuth's eyes, she couldn't look at the two of them as she continued, "I don't know how to even start explaining much less fix this."

Lapis wavered. She pulled the arm of water back as she examined Bismuth again. As much as she hated to admit it, she still hurt. Her chest throbbed as Bismuth spoke, she twisted her hand into the hem of her shirt. How long had it been since she was poofed? How long had she suffered for years, trapped and cracked behind the smooth glass of the mirror? Bismuth may not have locked her away, but it was her fault she was mistaken for a crystal gem. If she had let her run away, then none of this would have happened! She wouldn't have to suffer, she wouldn't have to keep fighting! She wouldn't have met the crystal gems. She wouldn't have met Steven. She wouldn't have met Peridot... Lapis looked down at the small, green gem by her side. Peridot was still waiting for Lapis to make a move, ready to fight for her. She was ready to help her no matter the cost to herself. If she wasn't sealed away if she wasn't stuck in the mirror, would someone on Homeworld still fight for her? Lapis closed her eyes and sighed, then let her control of the water fall.

"Wha..?" Bismuth peaked out from behind her arms.

"You can't fix this. There is no fixing this, you're right you were wrong and you can't make up for it. But... I'm not going to hurt you. I'm so tired of hurting and being hurt, I just can't do this anymore. Let's just stop this stupid cycle, please." Lapis knelt down and pushed Peridot's hands down. Then stood back up and waited.

"I...I didn't come here to hurt you. When Steven said he wanted to introduce me to other gems, I didn't know...that he meant you. If I had known, I wouldn't have come. I would have just stayed away and never come back," Bismuth gritted her teeth. "You don't deserve to be, uh, reminded of what I did to you. I just wanted to apologize, but I can't. I don't have the right to. I'm sorry for wasting your time." Bismuth looked down and started back for the warp.

"Wait!" Lapis called out to her, "Please stay for a little longer." Bismuth looked over her shoulder quizzically. Lapis had made her hated for Bismuth pretty clear, the whiplash of the request almost tripped her. "Just sit down please," Lapis said. So Bismuth turned around, walked back to where she had been and sat cross-legged in front of Lapis who did the same. Peridot stood confused and looked back and forth between the two of them before sitting down herself.

"Why, are we doing this?" Bismuth asked.

"You can't fix this, but we can still talk. Steven taught me that everyone deserves second chances, or third chances. Let's start one, right here."

"That sounds pretty good to me," Bismuth said, "So where should we start?"

"Wherever you want to."

"Hmm, that's a pretty risky move. If I get to pick the topic then I guess we have to spend the rest of the night talking about this cool movie Steven showed me…"

Author's Note: hey guys I wanted to thank you for sticking with me through this very long hiatus. I decided to end the story this way for a few reasons, but mainly I just wanted them to start being ok again and sometimes that requires admitting things and small steps to make progress.