"I didn't know gems could fall asleep from exhaustion," Sid wondered as she lied on the couch alongside Jasper.

"Me neither, I just do it 'cause it feels good," Amethyst shrugged.

"Hey, do you guys mind giving me some time?" Sid asked the gems. They remained, unmoving. "I mean, like, alone."

"Oh! Hmm… Garnet?" Pearl looked up towards the fusion for a second opinion.

"Sure. Pearl stays, though," Garnet crossed her arms, leaving the Temple house with Amethyst.

"I'll just… I'm gonna go over here," Pearl sat on one of the bar stools, fiddling with her skirt and staring off into the distance.

"I just wish she could understand…" Sid whispered. Jasper's eyes cracked open, however she acted as if she was asleep. "The lives on this planet, they're all so valuable. Even if they don't live up to Homeworld's expectations, they still matter. I couldn't live with myself if I saw this planet destroyed. They deserve to live just as much as any gem on Homeworld." Sid looked up at Pearl. "How did you know you wanted to fight for Earth?"

"Everything I ever did was for Rose," Pearl admitted, a tear falling from her cheek. "I stayed and fought for her, indifferent as to whether the humans lived or died. All I cared about was Rose, at least until Steven came along. When Rose left us I didn't know what to do, and I guess I still don't. I'm sure that things will be okay, though. Steven is growing into a responsible, intelligent, and brave person, just like his mother." Pearl glanced at him. The sun was rising, hitting his cheeks with golden sunlight.

"Is that how you really feel about this garbage planet?" Jasper murmured, eyes opening to meet Sid's.

"Of course it is, Jasper! Once you get to meet some of the life here, you'll know."

"I don't really have any other option, do I?" Jasper said angrily, feeling like a cornered animal. She couldn't escape them, and if she tried, she would easily be killed.

"You'll realize soon enough that Homeworld is cruel," Sid stood up, letting Jasper lie on the couch. "I'm just glad to get you out of Malachite."

"Uh… Is this still a dream?" Steven looked down at Jasper as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"I wish," Jasper scoffed.

"What happened? Why is she here? I thought you and Lapis were fused at-"

"We unfused."

"Oh, okay. Is she one of us now?" Steven turned to Pearl and Sid.

"Definitely not. Give it some time, though," Phosphosiderite winked.

"As if I have any choice in the matter," Jasper growled, glaring at the gems.

"Oh. Probably not, I guess," Steven briefly felt pity for her, however his emotions wavered as he remembered how she captured them all and fought against his mother.

Jasper placed herself in the corner of the beach house in an attempt to isolate herself, however Phosphosiderite followed her.

"I liked to sit here at first, too," Sid smiled weakly.

"You don't need to play nice. I know you guys hate me. It's only a matter a time before I'm gone for good," her eyes filled with tears before being frantically hidden by her hair.

"Jasper, how could you possibly believe that‽ I love you!" Sid's eyes grew wide as she realized her mistake. Why did I just say that? "I-I mean…" She ran out the front door, leaving only Jasper and Steven in the room alone.

"So…" Steven trailed off, clearly uncomfortable. "I'm gonna go now. Garnet, watch Jasper!"

Once Garnet had arrived, Steven had left to find Phosphosiderite. She had hidden behind the same boulder they found her at years ago.

"Wow, that was awkward," he slid down the rock's surface, sitting alongside her.

"It's not funny, Steven! How am I supposed to explain that?" she buried her face in her hands. "I didn't want to tell her now. She just got here, and it's way too soon."

"Don't worry about it, Sid. Sometimes stuff happens too quickly, but at least the cat's out of the bag, right? I'm sure things will be okay," he patted her on the back and stood up, brushing the sand from his pyjamas. "I'm hungry. Let's go in so you can tell her all about the huge mistake you made," he laughed, grabbing her hand and leading her inside.

"No! Seriously Steven, I-" they had passed the door frame, and Sid found herself eye to eye with Jasper.

"I'll just let you two talk for a bit," Steven let go of Sid, leaving them alone in the corner of the room.

"Hey…" the silence smothered Sid, and all she wanted to do was run away. "About that-"

"Do you really feel that way?" Jasper stared at the gem with golden eyes, piercing through Sid's core.

"I didn't want you to know, not now… I just wanted you to get to know me again from all the years that were lost when we were apart. I know we've both changed since then. I've felt this way ever since we became friends, but I was so scared that if I told you, you wouldn't like me anymore, so I didn't tell you. I couldn't lose you," dread overwhelmed her being as Jasper ran from the house just as Sid had done minutes ago.

"Jasper! W-Wait! What's wrong?" She yelled through the window hastily.

"What is it with you guys and running away?" Steven wondered, smirking.

"Shut up, Steven. This is serious," Sid ran to follow her, arriving at the base of the temple.

"Jasper!" Sid called out. "There you are."

"I never stopped wanting you, not even after Yellow Diamond had hurt you," Jasper turned away from Sid to face the ocean, shrugging off her hands as the other gem tried to comfort her. After multiple attempts and multiple rejections, she had finally given up.

"You've always been like this," Sid growled, stepping away from Jasper. "Why won't you let anyone do anything for you? You could at least show some emotion-"

"You don't know what it's like to hide everything you've ever felt, do you?" Jasper spat, trembling voice rising in anger. "I-I've never been able to feel, not for a second! If I did, Yellow Diamond would make sure I ended up just like you."

Phosphosiderite's eyes filled with tears. "Jasper, I'm so sorry-"

"Whatever. It's not like it matters anymore." she sat near the water's edge, kicking at a loose stone.

"It does matter, though. You can always change yourself. Even if it doesn't happen overnight, and even if it's hard, it'll be worth it in the end."

They sat in silence, watching the water consume the shoreline. Finally, Jasper spoke, voice hushed and anxious.

"How?" Jasper stared at her in shock, hands trembling. "How do I do it?"

"Oh, uh…" Sid thought for a moment. "I guess the best way to start is to think about how you feel about something."

"I'm not stupid, Sid. I know that."

"I don't know what to tell you, then!" Sid exclaimed angrily. "Emotion is deeper than that. You just feel what's inside of you, and then let it out. It doesn't take thought. Whatever you've been keeping inside of you for all these years must be ridiculous, so I guess for you it's like walking into a room so messy you don't know where to start."

Sid turned to meet Jasper. Tears were falling from her vacant eyes as they met Sid's.

"I missed you," Sid wrapped her arms around Jasper, embracing her in a hug.

"I'm sorry. I can't believe you still care about me after how I treated you," Jasper choked, burying her face into Sid's chest.

"Don't apologize. None of what you've been taught, and none of what happened to me was ever your fault," Sid whispered.

They lay intertwined for hours, sun setting and opening a new world of starlight and glistening ocean water. The tide had approached dangerously high, reaching Sid's waist.

"I don't wanna move, stupid water," she complained.

"Huh? Oh," Jasper muttered. "You're all wet."

"No kidding," Sid looked down at her clothing, now drenched in tears and salt water. "Come on, let's go inside. The others are probably worried about us."

Jasper helped Phosphosiderite up, spinning her around as she stood.

"Hey! What are you doing?" she giggled.

"Come here," Jasper smiled playfully, taking her into a dance.

Their fluid movements and interlocking gestures brought them closer to becoming a single being, eyes gleaming under the moonlight as they began to feel closer than they had ever thought possible.

"Jasper? Sid? Where are you guys-" Amethyst sauntered around the beach until she had discovered them. "You fused? Oh, man, Garnet's gonna love that! Hey, Garnet!" Amethyst shouted towards the Temple. "Check it out!"

"What's the rush? I'm not goin' anywhere," the fusion beamed. "This feels really nice."

"Jasper, Phosphosiderite, I know it probably does feel nice, but you two need to unfuse right now," Garnet ordered.

"Oh, come on! You're a fusion, though!" she insisted, remaining fused.

"I'm a stable fusion," Garnet corrected.

"You don't know me! I could be more stable than you, for all you know," she grunted, crossing her arms.

"I highly doubt that," Garnet boasted. "Until you've proven yourself a stable fusion, or at the very least we know Jasper won't try anything, you can't stay fused."

"Whatever. Guess Rhodochrosite's gotta go," she transformed into two beings, phasing in and out of each other before finally remaining in their own.

"That was pretty great, right, Jasper?" Phosphosiderite stood up, stretching. She turned to look at Jasper, who remained on the ground with a shocked expression. "Jasper?"

"I didn't know fusion could feel that way…" she trailed off. "I always thought fusion was only for power, for weak gems who couldn't fend for themselves. That, though..."

"What do you mean, Jasper?" Sid frowned, raising and eyebrow.

Jasper looked towards Garnet, who was smiling widely and on the verge of tears. "Ruby, Sapphire- Garnet, how do you feel when you fuse? Powerful?"

"Jasper," Garnet walked towards her. "Fusion is so much more than that. I- We don't fuse for power, we fuse because our love keeps us bonded together. We love each other so much, we can't stand to be away. That's fusion, and that's why I'm Garnet. Never for power."

"That was the first time I'd ever fused without wanting to be my own," she glanced at Sid, giving her the first genuine smile she had seen in millennia.

"I think I know what you mean," Sid outstretched her hand, pulling Jasper up and into a kiss on the cheek. "Come on, let's go inside. I'm sure you can find something to do around the Temple."