"We could have saved lives!"

Steven was in the forge with Bismuth, and he was completely terrified at Bismuth's weapon. The Breaking Point, she called it…it could easily shatter gems, and Steven wanted no part of that.

Bismuth was getting upset, and Steven haphazardly wracked his brain for ideas, anything to stop a potential fight from breaking out. Think, think…

"The barn!" Steven blurted out, stopping Bismuth in her tracks as she stared at Steven.

"…the what?" she prompted, squinting.

"Look, Bismuth, there's…let me show you something, okay?" Steven asked. He held out his hand to Bismuth. She looked at Steven's hand before slowly taking it.

"Okay. Where are we going? This barn place?" Bismuth asked.

Steven nodded quietly in response, and led her away.

–

Peridot and Lapis were resting at the barn in silence, an episode of Camp Pining Hearts playing on the television before them. Lapis had returned from her day with Steven sullen and nearly snapping at Peridot when she had come to ask how her day had gone. According to her, Jasper had come after her and wanted to fuse with her again…and Lapis responded by punching her into the sea.

"Look, just…don't touch me for a while, okay?" Lapis asked. "I need time to myself."

Peridot complied, and chose to simply watch Camp Pining Hearts quietly. A knock on the door prompted Peridot and Lapis to jump, their eyes widening.

"It's just me!" Steven's voice called, and Peridot and Lapis relaxed, sighing in relief.

Steven opened the door, and an unfamiliar gem stood in the doorway with him. From the looks of things, she appeared to be a Bismuth, her gem in the center of her chest. She had what appeared to be a star on her shoulder, plus an apron and pants.

Lapis instantly froze up, looking straight at the Bismuth. "S…She…"

"…the Lapis, I recognize," the Bismuth admitted, looking up at her with wide eyes. "She's still alive?"

"You two know each other?" Peridot asked, glancing at Lapis.

"You!" Lapis shouted, stepping away. "You're why I was in that mirror! Why are you here?!"

"L-Lapis, it's okay! She won't hurt you!" Steven quickly assured. "Please, don't worry!"

"Steven, why did you bring her here?!" Lapis demanded, voice rising in pitch.

"I brought her because…because she needs to know that not every Homeworld Gem is as bad as she thinks they are!" Steven explained.

"…what?" Lapis responded, slowly relaxing.

"You two are Homeworld Gems?" Bismuth asked, eyes wide.

"…not anymore," Peridot replied. "Yellow Diamond…she just wanted to destroy the Earth for the sake of a geo-weapon! And on top of that, there are things on this planet that are worth protecting!"

Lapis hesitated before sighing. "…I can't go back. Homeworld isn't like it used to be. There isn't anything there for me. Here, though?"

She looked at Steven. "…there is someone here for me."

Steven smiled, nodding a little in response, before turning to face Bismuth. "Bismuth, this is Peridot and Lapis. They both used to be with Homeworld before deciding to live on Earth!"

Bismuth looked up at Peridot and Lapis, frowning when she saw Lapis retreat away from view. "H-Hey, uh…I won't hurt you guys, don't worry."

Peridot climbed down to the ground floor, looking up at Bismuth. "So you're…another Crystal Gem? Why haven't I met you before?"

"I was out since the war," Bismuth explained, folding her arms and looking down. "I was held in this lion mane until Steven let me go."

"Since the war?! Whoa…!" Peridot gasped. "You're kidding!"

Bismuth chuckled. "Nope. Was one of the original Crystal Gems at that," she answered. "Nice to meet you, Peridot!"

"Lapis?" Steven softly called. "Do you want to come down and talk?"

Lapis peeked her head from above. "…I'd…I'd rather not, Steven."

"It's okay! You don't have to talk to her if you don't want to!" Steven assured, and Lapis retreated to where she was.

Bismuth looked back at Steven. "So…you brought me here to show me these two?" she asked.

Steven nodded. "I wanted to show you them because…a lot's changed since the whole war. And on top of that…not every gem is bad if they're with Homeworld."

Bismuth looked back at Peridot, then up at where Lapis was staying. She was quiet for a little while, before sighing. "Steven?"

"Yeah?" Steven asked.

"…let's go back to the others," she prompted. "I…I want to come by again later with you, if it's alright."

Steven nodded quickly. "Yeah! I wouldn't mind that!"

–

Steven and Bismuth re-entered the house a short while later. Pearl was washing dishes, while Garnet and Amethyst were chilling out

"Steven! Where did you and Bismuth go?" Pearl asked, looking up.

"Well, first we went to the forge, but then we went to see Peridot and Lapis. You guys, I…I think Bismuth really needs to be updated on what happened after she was bubbled," Steven explained.

"…what happened after I was bubbled?" Bismuth asked, sitting down on the couch. "It couldn't have been something minor, you guys just…said we were the last ones."

Pearl and Garnet exchanged uneasy looks, Pearl setting down the plate she was scrubbing. "…the Diamonds hit the Earth with…well, something that corrupted every other gem but us. Rose could only save us."

Bismuth's eyes widened, jaw dropping. "Corrupted? What do you mean, corrupted?" she asked. "How, why…why?!"

"They were losing the war," Garnet explained. "I think they thought it was better to wipe us out."

"And they just…is that what happened to everyone?! Biggs, Crazy Lace, Snowflake…why didn't you tell me?" Bismuth questioned, voice shaking.

"We didn't know how to put it. You've been gone for so long, I…" Pearl began before shaking her head. "…no, it…it was irresponsible of us to hide this from you. I'm so sorry, Bismuth."

Bismuth ran a hand through her hair, taking a deep breath. "…how many have you guys got so far?" she asked. "The gems, I mean."

"A bunch," Amethyst answered. "We can show you the room if you'd like."

Bismuth shook her head. "…maybe later, but…but not now, okay? I…If I had any idea that's what Homeworld did…"

She drooped, staring at the ground. "…you guys are coming clean, might as well too. Before Rose bubbled me…I made a weapon that could easily shatter a gem. I did it because I thought maybe we could end the war before we lost anymore gems. Maybe we could stop the Diamonds and save everyone else under them."

"Y…You did?" Pearl asked, raising a hand to her mouth.

"I showed Rose, we got into an argument, and…well, she wound up bubbling me, as you could see. I was just…I was angry we were losing people because of this war, I wanted it to end before I lost any of you! And now…"

Bismuth sighed. "…didn't even get to say good-bye. And now I'm wondering what would have happened if she did agree to the Breaking Point."

"…I think that's something best left discussed for a later time. Bismuth, I understand you're upset at the Diamonds, I really do," Garnet assured, resting her hand on Bismuth's shoulder. "However, shattering gems is not our priority. Right now, we're trying to work on rescuing as many corrupted gems as we can."

Bismuth nodded. "Got it. No breaking, just poofing. As for the Breaking Point…I'm going to dismantle it and see what I can use its parts for."

Steven sighed in relief, shortly before glancing at the temple door and back at Bismuth. "Wait…where is she going to stay for now?"

"Well, she can stay with me," Amethyst suggested. "My room's plenty big, anyways."

Bismuth smiled. "Thanks, Amethyst! I might go to the forge for a while, see what I can do with the Breaking Point. Seems I have a lot I need to do, now that I'm back in bismuth."

Steven couldn't help but laugh at the pun, Amethyst sighing and rolling her eyes. "You know, that wasn't a good gem of a joke," she retorted, grinning.

Bismuth raised her eyebrows before chuckling. "Oh, come now, Amethyst, you're acting a little boulder than I thought you'd be!" she responded.

"I dunno, your jokes are a little too rocky for my tastes!" Amethyst laughed, doubling over as she responded.

Pearl sighed, shaking her head. "I can't believe these two…!" she muttered, though she was smiling at the puns.

"Steven," Garnet spoke, and Steven turned to face her. "I'm glad you reminded us to tell her what happened to the other gems. In hindsight, we should have told her that first. Thank you."

"You're welcome!" Steven responded, smiling.

"Garnet, get these two to stop!" Pearl prompted, even though she was giggling herself.

"Sorry, Pearl, but I'm kind of digging these jokes," Garnet responded, grinning.

Steven couldn't help but laugh at that one, as did the other Gems in the room.