A/N:

Hey! It's been a while, eh? I've been busy basking in my own self loathing. Well... that's something you didn't need to know that I didn't just delete. Yeah... Anywho, more Purple Diamond stuff. I'm happy how much of you like her. Seriously, I love you!

Anywho, enjoy this piece. We're gonna be seeing more than just Purple Diamond here ;)

Nothing was explained to Steven as he was sent back to the ship with his friends. Purple Diamond wanted them out and the only explanation her pearl gave was that she would be away from the colony for an undetermined amount of time. Stevem sort of understood why she had them sent away. She didn't want them messing around in her control room without her supervision. But sometimes Steven got the feeling that she didn't really care about him as a person.

Now Steven wasn't one to go back on what he was told, breaking rules and such. Pearl would have a fit if he did. But as they headed back to the roaming eye, he slipped off on his own. They boy still recalled his first trip through this labyrinth and how upset he had been at the time. He knew things better this time around though, and it wasn't as complicated as he had first thought.

He turned the corner and saw a figure, who could be no one other than Purple Diamond, step onto a large warp pad. He wondered briefly about why this warp pad was so isolated, but this was no time for questions. The boy had to enter the warp before it took the diamond away completely.

"Universe?!" Purple exclaimed as they were carried off by the stream.

"Um… Hey, Purple." Steven started, reaching a hand to scratch the back of his neck. "So where we going?"

The diamond's eyes narrowed as she let out a short growl. "Somewhere you shouldn't be." She explained.

As they were let out from the warp, Steven's jaw dropped at the sight before him. "Woah." The structure was ginormous. He'd never seen anything quite like it. As the boy looked around, he noticed two tiers of murals on the dome above them. The lower one depicted diamonds of many colors, purple included; and above, the three diamonds of white, blue, and yellow.

"Go back, Little Universe."

"But we just got here!"

"Now."

Steven crossed his arms. He didn't want to go back just yet. The way he looked at the diamond told her his every intention.

Purple Diamond sighed. She didn't have time for this right now. With a wave of her hand, darkness consumed the boy's very form. "Stay in the shadows and do not make a sound."

Steven started giggling instead. He felt like a ninja.

"Not a sound." She repeated, walking toward a set of large doors. "They already think I'm crazy enough."

Steven followed the diamond, sticking to her advice and remaining within her shadow. No one would see him coming until it was too late! He tried his hardest to keep all his silly thoughts on this within his own head, and there were many.

Purple headed through the doors, leading through an empty passage, large enough for any diamond to comfortably pass through. Steven followed close by, his attention drifting until she came to a stop in front of a red diamond? Yeah, that's exactly what this other diamond seemed to be.

"Look who's arriving late." She spoke. "Where have you been?"

Purple looked back to where Steven was hiding, but only briefly. "Places."

The other diamond hummed. It was like she expected an answer like that from her colleague. "Well as long as you aren't so vague in front of the Authority. After all, not every diamond is as forgiving as yours truly." She said, placing a hand over the gem on her chest and glancing down towards… no, she couldn't see him.

Purple Diamond grunted, but noticing where the other's gaze was focused, she coughed and hurried through the last set of doors.

The chamber within held every diamond, seated around a different symbol in the middle of the room which Steven hadn't seen before. A singular diamond, covered in a pattern of the visible spectrum.

"Purple Diamond," White Diamond spoke as she entered the room. "What a pleasure it is to see you join us today."

Purple let out a small grunt as she headed towards her appointed seat, nudging Steven into the shadows under her desk.

"We've been receiving reports of your new project." Yellow Diamond started. "Tell us the progress of this Project Universe."

Steven's eyes widened as he waited under cover, seeing Purple's own hands clench against her knees. She knew he was listening, and she knew he had found her out. The project she'd named after him.

Purple refused to lose her nerve in front of the Authority, though most of them could already see just how uncomfortable she was at that moment. "Project Universe is proceeding mostly as planned."

"Mostly?" Piped Red, earning concerning mumbles from the other diamonds.

"You've all read the reports." Purple broke in, trying to gain back control. "The creature has given more information than I initially expected, however…"

White Diamond folded her hands before her. "However?"

"I fear losing the creature's trust." She paused, hearing more sounds of disapproval from the crowd. They were diamonds, they could get whatever information they wanted with a single command. "I'm treading thin ice, my fellow diamonds. One misstep and everything is in ruins. Need I not remind you how crucial the information of this project is?"

"Duly noted." White Diamond commented. The head diamond then proceeded on with the status reports from the others.

Through all this, Purple would look down toward the hybrid boy hiding in the shadows. How that boy wanted to speak up right then, but he knew as well as she, how this was a talk that needed to be saved for their return.

The two arrived back at Purple Diamond's control room. Steven hadn't spoken to her since their return from the Diamond Base.

"I like my silence, but not this kind." The diamond finally spoke.

"Why didn't you ever tell me I was just another experiment?!" Steven cried out.

"Now experiment is not exactly the word I would use to describe the situation." Purple shrugged.

"But you've just been using me this whole time!" Tears threatened to spill from the boy's eyes. "What kind of information were you trying to get? Earth, the Crystal Gems? My mom?!"

"Not that any of it matters now." Purple sighed.

Steven finished wiping his nose on his arm, looking up at the diamond with blurred vision. "H-huh?"

"Purple Diamond, the greatest disappointment to the Authority since the loss of Pink Diamond herself." She slumped back in her throne, avoiding eye contact with the little hybrid before her. And Steven saw something he never expected from the terrifying force before him. Tears.

Steven wiped away the last of his own, and without speaking, hugged one of Purple's boots.

The diamond blinked a few times, looking down at the strange sight. She didn't quite know how to react. She could easily kick the hybrid away, but the gesture lit a warm feeling within her gem. "You realize this is going to take more than a hug to fix, Little Universe."

"I know," Steven said.

"And forget everything you just saw right now."

"Forget what?" He smiled up at her. He still wasn't over the way she had used him, but this was a step. For both of them.

A/N:

Oh hey, more diamonds. By the way, this won't be Red's last appearance. She has a lot more significance than what I've shown here.

And poor Steven, it always sucks learning that you're a tool in someone else's plan. Well, she's not gonna treat him that way for long. We all know how little Steven works his way into everyone's hearts. How dare he be so loveable. And the fact that he saw her vulnerable side. Ah, Steven never lets anything like that just rest. Hehe.

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Your writer Squish, wishing you all a wonderful day! :D